Green Campus Week 2026
7–11 September
Green Campus Week is an annual celebration of the sustainability initiatives, ideas and people creating positive change across tertiary education campuses in Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand.
First established as Green Campus Day in 2017, the initiative originally provided ACTS members with an opportunity to showcase sustainable campus design, infrastructure and innovation during World Green Building Week. In 2025, it expanded into Green Campus Week, creating more opportunities for institutions to share activities and involve their campus communities.
In 2026, Green Campus Week will take place from Monday 7 to Friday 11 September.
Submit an event for Green Campus Week
Want to host a sustainable building tour? Edible garden workshop? Food security seminar?
All events are welcome as part of Green Campus Week celebrations!
Fill in the form below or get in contact with us if you have any questions.
On campus
Virtual
(AU) Get your electric wheels on
Duration: 1 hour
Time: 1pm AWST | 3pm AEST | 5pm NZST
Institution: University of Technology SydneyHear from renewables expert and Green Infrastructure Project Manager Jonathan Prendergast about the opportunities, challenges and logistical issues associated with rolling out electric vehicle infrastructure at your organisation. From greening your fleet to helping stabilise energy management, and even attracting high calibre staff, the benefits can be significant.
From a personal perspective, Jonathan will also discuss the thrills and spills of EV selection and ownership.
Interactive session including Q&A.
(NZ) The Living Pā
Duration: 45 minutes
Time: 7am AWST | 9am AEST | 11am NZST
Institution: Te Herenga Waka Victoria | University of WellingtonPresenter: Rhonda Thomson, Pou Hāpai (Senior advisor) and Co-Project Manager the Living Pā.
We know that we need to make more conscious choices for the environment and for the legacy we’ll leave the next generation. Indigenous peoples around the world are searching for initiatives that can support us to be who we are meant to be on our everyday lives. Māori and non-Māori businesses are looking for holistic, science-based model to address the big challenges we are all confronting; the changing climate, depleting resources, injustices and inequities. In this webinar, Rhonda will talk about the redevelopment of the marae (Māori complex) at Te Herenga Waka—Victoria University of Wellington. As a values-based proposition the Living Pā, a learning and innovation hub, is designed to deliver environmental, people and business benefits, and hope.
Join us live for a short webinar followed by Q+A.
Videos
(AU) Bush tucker virtual tour
Institution: The University of Queensland
Edible bush plants have been an integral part of the indigenous Australian diet for centuries.
There are more than 5,000 different bush food species in Australia but only 20 of these plants have become part of the developed world’s diet.
UQ’s Bush Tucker Garden provides visitors with an opportunity to explore bush foods by experiencing them within the south-east Queensland ecosystem natural to these plants
(AU) CampusFlora – explore biodiversity across our campuses
Institution: The University of Sydney
The University of Sydney is committed to growing and supporting diverse flora and fauna on our campuses by protecting and improving the ecosystems that attract interconnected plants, fungi and wildlife species. Thanks to a project led by Associate Professor Rosanne Quinnell and botany students and staff, you can now explore the flora across all of our campuses virtually. The CampusFlora website is a learning and teaching tool. It contains the botanical details of all species across all campuses from Camperdown to One Tree Island.
In partnership with different academics from across disciplines, self guided trails have been added so you can discover a new botanical route across campus. One example is the Patyegarang trail. This was developed in collaboration with Associate Professor Quinnell’s Aboriginal colleagues (Quinnell et al., 2018) and offers content from Professor Jaky Troy’s work on Indigenous languages.
In offering this trail in CampusFlora Associate Professor Quinnell’s pays her deepest respects to Patyegarang, the first known teacher of language and to the traditional custodians of the Eora nation upon whose land the University stands.
(AU) Gold STARS at UTAS
The University of Tasmania is proud to be the first Australasian Gold rated institution in the global Sustainability Tracking, Assessment & Rating System (STARS). We have worked together across all Colleges and Divisions and in partnership with our students to achieve 73.8 percent of available points. Earlier this year we recieved a ranking of #1 in the world on Climate Action in the Times Higher Education Impact rankings. In addition, our Sustainability Integration Program for Students (SIPS) was recently awarded the 2022 International Green Gown Award for Student Engagement and our University was highly commended in the Sustainability Institution of the Year category. In lots of ways the real value of this recognition is that it helps with our aspiration to be making a difference both here in Tasmania and far beyond our shores and to share how universities can be leading in taking action for our climate.
Join us online to explore our campus community food gardens, hear about how we are reducing embodied carbon in new buildings, and virtually visit our first green roof. You will hear from staff and students working to rehabilitate a 200-year-old heritage orchard and how we are diverting organic materials to make compost on campus.
(AU) RMIT Sustainability Virtual Campus Tour
Take a look at some of the innovative ways RMIT is incorporating sustainability practices into our learning and teaching, research and operational activities.
On campus
(AU) RMIT Ferment-a-thon
Melbourne, VIC
Date: Thursday 11 September
Time: 10am – 1pm AEST (RMIT Brunswick Campus), 12pm – 6pm AEST (RMIT City Campus)
Institution: RMIT University
Meeting point: RMIT City Campus, Building 78 | RMIT Brunswick Campus, Building 516, Level 2, room 1Come and learn about Wild, Raw, Living Ferments: Hear from experts how to make it delicious for a cultured gut.
Ferment the rest with the best of us in this fermentation masterclass led by gut legends Sharon Flynn and Long Prawn.SCOBYs and living cultures, ready to eat – Sauerkraut, Kimchi, Pickles, Water Kefir, Milk Kefir, Jun, Kombucha, Koji, Preserves.
Come for an hour or come for a day and help us lay down many ferments for the ‘Shared Futures Festival’. Take home your very own pet ferment.
Register here: https://www.rmit.edu.au/students/student-life/events/2025/sep/sustainability-ferment-a-thon
(AU) UNSW Sustainability Campus Tour
Sydney, NSW
Date: Tuesday 9 September
Time: 11am – 12pm AEST
Institution: University of NSW
Meeting point: Library LawnGuided by the Environmental Sustainability Team, the sustainable campus tour is your gateway to discovering the many initiatives, services, and tips that can help you live sustainably on campus.
Starting and finishing at the Library Lawn, the tour will showcase key sustainability features like renewable electricity, end-of-trip facilities, native plants, and even a handy wash station to encourage reusable habits on campus. Along the way, you’ll meet like-minded peers, share ideas, and connect with our team to ask questions or offer feedback.
Register here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/oweek-sustainability-campus-tour-spring-tickets-1603762680349?aff=oddtdtcreator
(NZ) Massey Seed Swap
Palmerston North, NZ
Date: Wednesday 10 September
Time: 12pm – 2pm NZST
Institution: Massey University, Manawatū Campus
Meeting point: Manawatū Campus ConcourseThe Sustainability team and Massey Student Wildlife and Conservation Club invite our staff and students to join a campus Seed Swap this Green Campus Week!
We want to help our staff and students plant something new in your home, office or garden this spring.
Anyone can bring along plants, cuttings, seeds or seedlings or give us a small koha in exchange for a new plant baby to take home.All proceeds will go to the kind folks at Pūkaha National Wildlife Centre | Mt Bruce, and leftover seeds will be used to start a Seed Library at Massey
No registration required…just show up!
(NZ) VUW Living Building, Future Leaders
Wellington, NZ
Date: Thursday 11 September
Time: 5:30pm – 7:30pm NZST
Institution: Te Herenga Waka – Victoria University of Wellington
Meeting point: Ngā Mokopuna (42 Kelburn Parade)Ngā Mokopuna (previously known as the Living Pā) is the redevelopment of the marae precinct at Te Herenga Waka – Victoria University of Wellington. It sets a new benchmark for regenerative design and construction, using the Living Building Challenge as a framework to bring together Māori values and sustainability principles. We want Ngā Mokopuna to be a catalyst for action in Wellington and a hub for the sustainability community.
Join us for drinks and nibbles, a guided tour of the building, and a chance to network with other sustainability professionals and some of our most talented and dedicated students – the next generation of sustainability leaders.
RSVP here (by 5 Sept): Andrew Wilks – Director of Sustainability, VUW (andrew.wilks@vuw.ac.nz)
(AU) UTS Green Campus Tour
Sydney, NSW
Date: Tuesday 9 September
Time: 11am – 12pm AEST
Institution: University of Technology Sydney
Meeting point: Global Goals Month Exhibition Space (UTS Foyer, Level 4 Building 1)Want to learn more about what makes the UTS campus sustainable? Come along to a free tour of UTS highlighting the green features of our campus, from the buildings to our native bees. It’s a great chance to learn about climate action on a larger scale and meet other sustainability minded people on campus.
The tour will be hosted by the sustainability team, so feel free to ask us any questions you might have about getting involved in sustainability while we’re exploring. See you there!
Register here: https://events.humanitix.com/uts-green-campus-tour-ggm2025
(NZ) Massey Spring Photo Competition
Massey University, NZ
Date: 8 – 12 September
Institution: Massey UniversityThe Sustainability team and Massey Student Wildlife and Conservation Club invite our staff and students to submit a photo to our competition.
The 8th – 12th September is Conservation Week AND Green Campus Week, plus we will soon be starting to see the first signs of spring popping up across our campuses. We call that cause for celebration!3 lucky winners will take home a framed copy of their print, plus a $75 voucher to a local eco store of their choice. Our panel will choose one staff and one student winner, and a “people’s choice” vote will determine the third winner.
– Take your photo on any campus (or at your place of study if you’re a distance student). We want to see birds, trees, plants, critters…anything that shows off the flora and fauna near you.
– Email your photo to sustainability@massey.ac.nz before 4pm on Wednesday 10 September.
– We will announce the winners on Friday 12 September.Last year we held a similar biodiversity themed competition, and we were struck by how much wildlife we have on our campuses and how many talented photographers we have here at Massey! Check out this little gallery of some of our incredible 2024 entries (link: https://www.instagram.com/p/
C906iW5SNwh/?utm_source=ig_ web_copy_link&igsh= MzRlODBiNWFlZA==) for inspiration or just to brighten your day.
Virtual
(AU) Get your electric wheels on
Duration: 1 hour
Time: 1pm AWST | 3pm AEST | 5pm NZST
Institution: University of Technology SydneyHear from renewables expert and Green Infrastructure Project Manager Jonathan Prendergast about the opportunities, challenges and logistical issues associated with rolling out electric vehicle infrastructure at your organisation. From greening your fleet to helping stabilise energy management, and even attracting high calibre staff, the benefits can be significant.
From a personal perspective, Jonathan will also discuss the thrills and spills of EV selection and ownership.
Interactive session including Q&A.
(NZ) The Living Pā
Duration: 45 minutes
Time: 7am AWST | 9am AEST | 11am NZST
Institution: Te Herenga Waka Victoria | University of WellingtonPresenter: Rhonda Thomson, Pou Hāpai (Senior advisor) and Co-Project Manager the Living Pā.
We know that we need to make more conscious choices for the environment and for the legacy we’ll leave the next generation. Indigenous peoples around the world are searching for initiatives that can support us to be who we are meant to be on our everyday lives. Māori and non-Māori businesses are looking for holistic, science-based model to address the big challenges we are all confronting; the changing climate, depleting resources, injustices and inequities. In this webinar, Rhonda will talk about the redevelopment of the marae (Māori complex) at Te Herenga Waka—Victoria University of Wellington. As a values-based proposition the Living Pā, a learning and innovation hub, is designed to deliver environmental, people and business benefits, and hope.
Join us live for a short webinar followed by Q+A.
Videos
(AU) Bush tucker virtual tour
Institution: The University of Queensland
Edible bush plants have been an integral part of the indigenous Australian diet for centuries.
There are more than 5,000 different bush food species in Australia but only 20 of these plants have become part of the developed world’s diet.
UQ’s Bush Tucker Garden provides visitors with an opportunity to explore bush foods by experiencing them within the south-east Queensland ecosystem natural to these plants
(AU) CampusFlora – explore biodiversity across our campuses
Institution: The University of Sydney
The University of Sydney is committed to growing and supporting diverse flora and fauna on our campuses by protecting and improving the ecosystems that attract interconnected plants, fungi and wildlife species. Thanks to a project led by Associate Professor Rosanne Quinnell and botany students and staff, you can now explore the flora across all of our campuses virtually. The CampusFlora website is a learning and teaching tool. It contains the botanical details of all species across all campuses from Camperdown to One Tree Island.
In partnership with different academics from across disciplines, self guided trails have been added so you can discover a new botanical route across campus. One example is the Patyegarang trail. This was developed in collaboration with Associate Professor Quinnell’s Aboriginal colleagues (Quinnell et al., 2018) and offers content from Professor Jaky Troy’s work on Indigenous languages.
In offering this trail in CampusFlora Associate Professor Quinnell’s pays her deepest respects to Patyegarang, the first known teacher of language and to the traditional custodians of the Eora nation upon whose land the University stands.
(AU) Gold STARS at UTAS
The University of Tasmania is proud to be the first Australasian Gold rated institution in the global Sustainability Tracking, Assessment & Rating System (STARS). We have worked together across all Colleges and Divisions and in partnership with our students to achieve 73.8 percent of available points. Earlier this year we recieved a ranking of #1 in the world on Climate Action in the Times Higher Education Impact rankings. In addition, our Sustainability Integration Program for Students (SIPS) was recently awarded the 2022 International Green Gown Award for Student Engagement and our University was highly commended in the Sustainability Institution of the Year category. In lots of ways the real value of this recognition is that it helps with our aspiration to be making a difference both here in Tasmania and far beyond our shores and to share how universities can be leading in taking action for our climate.
Join us online to explore our campus community food gardens, hear about how we are reducing embodied carbon in new buildings, and virtually visit our first green roof. You will hear from staff and students working to rehabilitate a 200-year-old heritage orchard and how we are diverting organic materials to make compost on campus.
(AU) RMIT Sustainability Virtual Campus Tour
Take a look at some of the innovative ways RMIT is incorporating sustainability practices into our learning and teaching, research and operational activities.
Virtual
(AU) UNSW Sydney: Autumn colours light up the campus
Every year from mid-May through to early June, UNSW Sydney colours up in red, orange, yellow and gold. Join us on a virtual Autumn Walk around UNSW Sydney Kensington campus and learn more about our spectacular deciduous trees, what they are called and where to find them on our campus.
For more information, contact sustainability@unsw.edu.au
(AU) UNSW Sydney: Kensington Campus Sustainability Map
Explore UNSW Sydney’s sustainability initiatives and services through this interactive map of the main Kensington campus. Map features multiple layers with information about campus water refill and dishwashing facilities, plastic free retailers, recycling facilities, cycling end of trip facilities, rooftop solar PV systems, total energy and water heatmaps and a detailed map of campus trees.
For more information, contact sustainability@unsw.edu.au
(AU) UOM: Sustainability tour
Explore the University of Melbourne’s sustainable initiatives, services, and infrastructure on our virtual Sustainability Tour. You will hear University experts explain how we embed sustainability across our campuses in order to reduce our collective environmental impact.
Onsite
(AU) UTS: Green roof tour
UTS has five green roofs providing habitat for urban biodiversity and spaces for humans to hang out. This walking tour takes in all five spaces.
(NZ) AUT: Biodiversity walk
Claire Ellis – an AUT graduate – will walk you through the South campus where you’ll learn about the range of native trees and plants on campus and how they support biodiversity. This event is free for all AUT staff and students. Numbers are restricted.
(NZ) AUT: Try an electric bike
Have you wanted to feel the power of an electric bike? During lunchtime come and try an electric bike in an area on campus. An instructor will be there to introduce you to electric bikes (helmets also provided).
(NZ) VUW: Wellington School of Architecture Sustainable Research Showcase
Haere mai! Join us during World Green Building Week 2020 for a showcase of the latest sustainable architectural research from thesis level students at Victoria University of Wellington School of Architecture. Building and construction must play a key role in tackling era-defining problems, making it a crucial time for our sector.
Live stream
(AU) ANU: Digital workshop
How might the ANU reduce greenhouse gas emissions from its buildings as rapidly as possible? This digital workshop (via zoom) provides an opportunity to share your ideas for how the Australian National University (ANU) might reduce greenhouse gas emissions from our buildings as rapidly as possible.
(AU) UTS: Talking Bees
See the UTS native beehive and hear from Judy Friedlander and Francisco Garcia Bulle discussing the important role played by bees, the B & B highway project, and keeping native stingless bees. Tune into the UTS: Green Facebook live-stream, and join the audience Q&A.
Virtual
(AU) La Trobe: Net Zero Project
We have recently completed the installation of 7,500 solar panels at our Melbourne Campus. This solar energy system is capable of generating up to 50% of our campus energy needs, off-setting 4,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide per year and saving the University almost $615,000 per year.
It’s all part of our commitment to becoming carbon neutral by 2029. Find out more about the Net Zero Project here.
(AU) UNSW: Jacaranda trees blossom
The purple prelude to summer’s warm weather has arrived. Every year from late October through November the Kensington campus lights up with 17 Jacaranda trees in bloom. Dotted across UNSW from the Michael Birt Lawn down to Southern Drive, these ornamental trees add splashes of beauty to lawns and water features. Take the UNSW Sydney virtual Jacaranda Walk and learn more about these spectacular trees.
(AU) UOM: Sustainability tour
Explore the University of Melbourne’s sustainable initiatives, services, and infrastructure on our virtual Sustainability Tour. You will hear University experts explain how we embed sustainability across our campuses in order to reduce our collective environmental impact.
(AU) UQ: Solar program
UQ’s solar program has been harvesting the sun for over a decade. In this online tour, learn about the rooftop solar facilities that cover UQ’s campuses but can only be seen from a birds-eye view. There are approximately 10,000 solar panels that make up the 2.14MW system installed on more than 30 rooftops at St Lucia campus, making it one of the largest integrated solar installations in the country.
To learn more about UQ’s solar rooftop program, or anything else to do with sustainability, go here and sustainability.uq.edu.au
(AU) UQ: Warwick solar farm
UQ’s massive Warwick Solar Farm will enable UQ to be 100% renewable by 2020 – this year! This means UQ will be the first university globally to own our own solar farm that will generate as much or more electricity each year than the University needs. Mr Andrew Wilson, UQ’s resident solar expert, takes us on an online tour!
You can learn more about UQ’s Warwick Solar Farm and the renewable energy programs here and at sustainability.uq.edu.au
(AU) UTAS: Interactive map
The tour explores how aspects of sustainability have been incorporated within the University of Tasmania. Features on the tour include the University’s sustainable building designs, transport services, waste management, biodiversity on campus, options for health and wellbeing activities and social sustainability as well as student sustainability projects on the campus.
