Are you concerned about increasing occurrences of natural disasters and global environmental issues, such as bushfires and floods in Australia, heatwaves in North America, and mudslide in Japan?

The outbreak of the COVID pandemic has also presented previously unforeseen challenges across our society, industries, and global economy. Lockdowns and border closures have put many people at risk of losing their jobs. Millions of businesses are facing huge losses and struggling with a cold prospect. Moreover, the disposable masks, wipes and gloves consumed during the pandemic also exacerbated the problem of plastic pollution.

These challenges today are creating the need for new jobs, skills and education that can tackle these environmental, social, economic and health problems.

Our new combined degree, the Bachelor of Sustainability and Environment, responds to employment gaps in businesses and industries needing to consider more sustainable development and growth in order to adapt to a post-Covid-19 world. The degree equips students with knowledge on the different dimensions of sustainability and the complexity of sustainable development and provides skills in problem solving, data analysis, evaluation, stakeholder engagement and design thinking. It is taken as a combined degree to add specialisation in sustainability to the professional areas of Business, Economics, Management, Science and Public Health:

Sustainable Development Goals

In 2015, the United Nations General Assembly set up 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as a "blueprint to achieve a better and more sustainable future for all". These SDGs were officially adopted by leaders of countries including Australia at the United Nations Development Summit.

17 sustainability goals

In order to advance the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, these goals involved many globally interlinked goals, including climate change and economic inequality. In addition to environmental and natural resource sustainability, social and economic sustainability were also included. As one of the UN members, Australia has devoted to sustainable development by focusing on specific areas, such as community recovery and operational plans, as well as making policies and strategies catering to national circumstances.

Career prospects

In order to more effectively implement the work to achieve the sustainable development goals by the 2030 deadline, the United Nations Development Programme has commenced recruiting positions in various fields working in more than 170 countries and territories. This includes the offering of internship opportunities for students and fresh graduates from a variety of academic backgrounds.

Sustainable development is now a keystone in the operational design of any business or organisation, leading to increasing job opportunities for our new generation. More and more manufacturing companies are becoming eco-conscious and adapting new innovated methods during the production process in order to keep our environment clean. For instance, clothing and footwear manufacturers are using more eco-friendly fibers or sustainable materials; there are more skin care and makeup products are vegan and cruelty free; and electric vehicles are becoming an alternative for traditional petrol cars. All these new trends are becoming more and more popular thanks to the arising awareness of sustainability.

Learn more about the Bachelor of Sustainability and Environment