J’pura Uni becomes first Carbon Neutral University in South Asia

The University of Sri Jayewardenepura announced that it has become the first ‘Carbon Neutral University in South Asia’ by insetting its Greenhouse Gas emissions in accordance with The Carbon-Inset® Guideline.

Recognising the importance of climate action, many leading universities around the world have pledged to become carbon neutral by ensuring that there is no net release of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, using mechanisms such as carbon offsetting and insetting, the University said.

In light of this, USJ became the first University in South Asia in October 2022 to report its GHG emissions in accordance with the ISO 14064-1 Standard. The 1,000acre forest restoration project of the University in Karuwalagaswewa, Puttalam District, was recently awarded the ISO 14064-2:2019 Certification, the University added.

With this certification, and following the requirements of the Carbon-Inset® Guideline, the University of Sri Jayewardenepura is now certified as a Carbon-Inset® Institution according to globally accepted standards.

This achievement positions the university as a leading “Green University” in South Asia, while setting a new standard for environmental sustainability among Sri Lankan universities, the University added.

The ‘Carbon Neutral USJ’ project was initiated in 2019 by the Center for Sustainability, Department of Forestry and Environmental Science. The road to carbon neutrality involved setting up a Carbon Management Team to report and manage the university GHG inventory.