Insubria featured in the UI GreenMetric World University Rankings, the international ranking on university sustainability

For the third consecutive year, the University of Insubria is featured in the UI GreenMetric World University Rankings, the international ranking promoted by Universitas Indonesia that assesses universities’ sustainability policies and performance. The 2026 edition includes 2,016 institutions from 110 countries, confirming its position as one of the largest international initiatives dedicated to sustainability in higher education.

Insubria ranks 1,100th worldwide and 29th among Italian universities, with an overall score of 5,342.5 points. This represents an increase of 1,365 points compared with the previous edition and reflects the University’s improved performance in several areas assessed by the ranking.

Globally, the top three positions are held by Wageningen University & Research, Umwelt-Campus Birkenfeld (Trier University of Applied Sciences), and Universidade de São Paulo – USP. Among Italian universities, the top positions are held by the University of Bologna, the University of Turin and Politecnico di Torino.

Sustainability: a path bringing together campus, teaching, research and the community

The result achieved by Insubria is significant not only because of its position in the ranking, but above all because it reflects a process of progressively strengthening the University’s sustainability policies. The 2026 UI GreenMetric methodology covers seven major areas: Setting and Infrastructure, Energy and Climate Change, Waste, Water, Transportation, Education and Research, and Governance and Digitalization. The new methodology also places particular emphasis on universities’ ability to integrate sustainability into their governance and digital transformation processes.

The UI GreenMetric index assesses university performance through 60 indicators distributed across seven thematic categories. Within this framework, Insubria achieved particularly significant results in several areas.

In Setting and Infrastructure, the University scored 705 points, ranking 649th worldwide. The category considers initiatives aimed at enhancing campus green areas, protecting biodiversity and ensuring that infrastructure complies with health and safety standards.

In Energy and Climate Change, the University achieved 915 points. This category assesses energy efficiency and strategies adopted to reduce the carbon footprint.

In Waste, Insubria scored 550 points, with particularly positive results for the implementation of separate waste collection, initiatives to reduce the use of single-use plastics and material recovery. The category assesses the management, reduction and treatment of waste produced within university facilities.

Water accounts for 210 points and considers policies for the conservation, saving and reuse of water resources. In Transportation, the score is 887.5 points: this category assesses sustainable mobility strategies aimed at limiting emissions associated with travel to and within the campus.

The result in Education and Research is particularly significant, with the University scoring 1,150 points and reaching 215th place worldwide. The category measures the university’s contribution to spreading a culture of and knowledge about sustainability through a wide range of courses dedicated to environmental and sustainable development issues, alongside scientific publications and academic events on these topics.

Finally, the Governance and Digitalization category, introduced for the first time in 2026, assesses how universities structure their institutional management around sustainability and how they use digital technologies to reduce the environmental impact of their activities. Insubria scores 925 points, ranking 408th worldwide.

The result achieved in Education and Research is therefore particularly significant, highlighting the University’s contribution to spreading a culture of sustainability through education, scientific research, outreach activities and engagement with the local community. The ranking, however, should not be regarded as an end point. On the contrary, it is a useful tool for identifying the areas in which continued investment is needed and for transforming sustainability from a collection of individual initiatives into an increasingly structural component of the University’s management.

From the ranking to the next objectives

“We are pleased with the progress achieved by Insubria in the UI GreenMetric ranking – says Professor Adriano Martinoli, Rector’s Delegate for Sustainability, Green Areas and Energy Efficiency – but we see this result above all as an incentive to do more. Sustainability cannot simply be a parameter through which we measure what we have already achieved: it must become a concrete perspective guiding the University’s future choices, with progressive action on buildings, energy, water, waste management, mobility and the quality of university spaces. From this perspective, in the coming years the University intends to develop a series of measures consistent with the same areas assessed by UI GreenMetric.”

Less plastic, more tap water

One of the objectives concerns the progressive reduction in the use of plastic materials, with particular attention to bottled water. The University intends to assess the possibility of progressively installing drinking-water dispensers directly connected to the water supply network at all University sites, while encouraging the use of reusable bottles and containers.

This choice can produce benefits on several fronts: reducing single-use containers, lowering the need for the production, handling and transportation of bottled water, reducing waste and rationalising procurement costs. Drinking water supplied through the public network is also subject to a regulatory control system and, according to the Italian National Institute of Health, tap water can be safely consumed when it complies with the required standards.

National legislation explicitly promotes the availability and use of tap water in public buildings and spaces. Promoting tap water therefore represents a measure to reduce waste, contain environmental impact and use resources more efficiently, in line with the GreenMetric indicators relating to waste and water management. The 2026 methodology considers both programmes aimed at reducing plastic use and water conservation programmes, the use of efficient equipment and the management of water systems.

More renewable energy for the campuses

A second strategic area concerns the strengthening of energy production from renewable sources. The University intends to progressively increase the number of photovoltaic systems installed on University buildings, making the most of available surfaces and directly contributing to renewable energy production.

This objective is particularly relevant in light of the University’s membership of the Malpensa Insubria Renewable Energy Community, promoted by the Chamber of Commerce of Varese, which represents an important opportunity to develop forms of territorial cooperation in the field of renewable energy and self-consumption.

Increasing energy production from renewable sources is one of the elements directly considered by UI GreenMetric. In the Energy and Climate Change category, the ranking assesses, among other aspects, the number of renewable energy sources present on campus, the ratio between renewable energy produced and overall consumption, energy efficiency and programmes aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

Greener campuses with greater biodiversity

Another area of intervention will concern the management of campus green areas, with the aim of progressively moving beyond an exclusively ornamental approach to green spaces and recognising their ecological, social and educational role.

The University intends to develop management practices increasingly focused on conserving and enhancing biodiversity, promoting, where possible, diversified green areas, spaces for fauna and flora, natural features and solutions that can also contribute to microclimate regulation and the quality of university environments.

Campuses can thus become genuine oases of biodiversity and wellbeing, available to students and university staff and, where conditions allow, also to citizens who live in and use University spaces. This objective is also fully consistent with the GreenMetric methodology, which considers green areas, open spaces, vegetation, infrastructure dedicated to the wellbeing of the university community and initiatives for the conservation of flora and fauna.

More sustainable mobility to reach the campuses

Another area of action concerns sustainable mobility, with the aim of making it increasingly easy for students, staff and visitors to reach University sites by public transport, bicycle, e-scooters and shared mobility services, progressively reducing dependence on private cars.

In this area, the University of Insubria, in agreement with TPL Linea Varese, has introduced additional services on Line C, which is particularly important for connections to the Bizzozero Campus. Discussions are also underway with the public transport operator to assess how the service can be made increasingly suited to the timetables and mobility needs of the student population.

At the same time, the University continues its pilot project with BePooler to encourage university carpooling, promoting shared car journeys and consequently reducing the number of vehicles used to reach the campuses. The initiative also includes an annual award ceremony for students who have made the greatest contribution, through shared journeys, to reducing individual car use.

In terms of active mobility, the University is also working with the Municipality of Varese and the Province of Varese on the design of the cycling connections needed to link railway stations with the Bizzozero Campus, with the aim of making the last mile of university journeys safer and more functional.

Promoting the use of bicycles and e-scooters, together with strengthening public transport and shared mobility options, is an important component of an overall strategy aimed at reducing the environmental impact of daily travel to and within campuses. These measures are also consistent with the Transportation category of UI GreenMetric, which considers universities’ policies to promote more sustainable forms of transport, reduce private vehicle use and encourage lower-impact mobility options.

Water conservation starts with everyday actions

As far as water is concerned, the University has already launched concrete measures. Flow restrictors have been installed on taps at University sites and in the showers of university residences, with the aim of reducing consumption while maintaining adequate levels of functionality.

This is a first step within a strategy that will need to be further developed through consumption monitoring, the adoption of efficient devices, waste reduction and, where technically and economically feasible, the recovery and reuse of water resources. The UI GreenMetric methodology also specifically considers water conservation programmes, water recycling and the use of efficient water equipment.

A path of continuous improvement

Participation in the UI GreenMetric World University Rankings enables the University of Insubria to benchmark itself against an international framework while also providing a tool to critically assess its progress and identify priorities for action.

The objective for the coming years is not simply to improve the University’s position in the ranking, but to make the University’s everyday operations increasingly sustainable, through measurable and progressive actions: consuming less energy and producing more from renewable sources, using less plastic, making greater use of tap water, reducing water consumption, improving the management of green areas, promoting biodiversity, encouraging more sustainable mobility and integrating sustainability ever more deeply into teaching, research and governance.

From this perspective, the international ranking becomes a tool for accountability and planning, supporting a process in which every achievement provides the basis for setting more ambitious objectives.

UI GreenMetric: an international tool for measuring university sustainability

Launched by Universitas Indonesia in 2010, the UI GreenMetric World University Rankings is an international initiative dedicated to assessing the sustainability of higher education institutions. Over the years, the system has progressively expanded, growing from the 105 universities participating in its first edition to 2,016 institutions in 2026, across 110 countries.

The 2026 edition uses seven macro-categories covering both infrastructure and management aspects and those related to education, research and governance: Setting and Infrastructure, Energy and Climate Change, Waste, Water, Transportation, Education and Research, and Governance and Digitalization.

The University of Insubria’s commitment to sustainability is documented on the Uninsubria Sustainable webpage, which brings together the University’s main initiatives in relation to the objectives of the UN 2030 Agenda.

Uninsubria Sustainable: https://www.uninsubria.it/terza-missione/uninsubria-e-societa/uninsubria-sostenibile

UI GreenMetric World University Rankings 2026: https://uigreenmetric.com/rankings/university/overall-rankings-2026

(The photograph shows the entrance to the wetlands at the Bizzozero Campus, Varese.)