Our journey to carbon zero. Because the world can’t wait, and we won’t either.

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Together, we can create a sustainable future for our learners and the planet.

We care about reducing our carbon footprint and creating a better future for our planet. That’s why we’re making big changes to our business. From how we create our English exams and books, to how we get these to you, through to the way that we run our operations. We’re always finding new ways to reduce our carbon emissions.

2030

By 2030 we’re committed to reducing our energy-related emissions by 72%.

2048

We'll be carbon zero on energy-related emissions by 2048.

Our progress towards carbon zero

At Cambridge, we believe in making commitments that are measured using science-based targets. We’re committed to doing our best to limit global temperate rise to 1.5 by becoming carbon zero on energy-related emissions by 2048. Everything we can do to reduce our emissions has an impact – like switching to 100% renewable electricity for our Cambridge facilities, using sustainable and recycled materials in our products and reducing our energy use, whilst changing to greener energy sources. But we know the world needs us to do more.

We’re making big changes

of paper used for our English learning materials is sustainably sourced

99%

reduction in energy-based emissions by 2030

72%

renewable electricity in our Cambridge head office

100%

plastic in Cambridge English Qualifications packaging

30% less

Our journey to reach carbon zero

Only sustainably sourced paper

Using sustainable materials

A lower-carbon supply chain

From paper to digital

Getting our products to you

Renewable electricity

Only sustainably sourced paper

Paper is at the heart of our heritage, and the biggest part of our carbon footprint comes from paper used to create our English coursebooks and exams. Our goal is to only use certified sustainably sourced paper and we’re nearly there. Right now, 99% of our English learning materials use certified sustainably sourced paper such as Forest Stewardship Council (FSC).

–1.1 tons

less plastic waste each year by switching to recycled exam packaging

Using sustainable materials

For Cambridge English Qualifications, we’ve switched to packaging containing recycled materials. Our exam paper packaging now contains 30% less plastic, and we're working to reduce this even more. By changing our packaging, we’ve removed 1.1 tons of plastic waste each year vs 2021. That’s the equivalent of over 120,000 single use plastic carrier bags.

We don’t just care about what goes into our products, we also care how they’re made. That’s why we’re working with all our print suppliers to improve their carbon footprint too. All our printers are now part of the Book Chain Project and have to meet minimum standards. We also look at suppliers’ environmental credentials when we choose who we work with.

A lower-carbon supply chain

More and more of what we do is becoming digital, helping us to cut down on the amount of paper and plastic we use, and create less waste. We’re exploring the carbon impact of our digital products so we can make them lighter - this means they will use less data, will be more accessible and be better for the planet.

From paper to digital

We’re working to reduce our carbon footprint when getting our products around the world from our suppliers to you. Every year, we ship learning materials around the world. We’re reducing how far our English learning materials travel, meaning fewer emissions from transport. By developing more ways to print our learning materials locally and on demand, we’re able to cut down our freight miles.

Getting our products to you

Our UK offices are supplied by 100% renewable electricity, from solar panels to other renewable sources. Five of our UK offices already have on-site solar panels and we’re working to find even more energy and carbon savings at our own facilities.

Renewable electricity

Sustainability in English language teaching

We know our English teachers around the world care about sustainability as much as we do. That’s why we have support for teachers who are striving to bring sustainability into their English lessons. The Sustainability Framework for ELT makes it easier for you to see why teaching sustainability is important and helps you integrate sustainability skills into your lessons. Discover a range of practical teaching resources that help your learners develop their sustainability skills.

Teaching resources

Supporting our people and the planet

We care about sustainability across our business. Learn more about how we’re supporting our communities around the world and see our latest progress to 2048.

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Removed single-use plastics

28%

We’ve reduced our UK Scope 1 & 2 (energy-related) carbon emissions by 28% since 2018-19

69%

of our total UK energy use is from certified renewable sources

Teaching resources

See more from Cambridge

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We’ve stopped using single-use CDs and USBs for Cambridge English Qualifications globally. That means over 389,000 CDs and USBs are no longer going to waste each year.

Language around sustainability can be confusing, so to help you we've added links to clear definitions for words that we use.