• University of Nottingham

Sustainability, Society and You

Join us for an introduction to the major global issue of sustainability and discover how you can have a real impact on our future.

18,470 enrolled on this course

Solar power and people
  • Duration

    6 weeks
  • Weekly study

    5 hours

Sustainability is one of the big global issues of our time. It is crucial that we all play our part in protecting our world for current and future generations. This course provides you with the knowledge and skills to do this by investigating sustainability from multiple angles and exploring what small steps you can take to have a real impact upon all our futures.

The course team includes academics and postgraduates from many disciplines and is led by Professor Sarah Speight, from Nottingham’s School of Education. Through videos, readings, activities and discussions, you will explore sustainability from the perspective of the environment, the economy, health, politics, society and culture, education and community.

You will be encouraged to look at your own behaviours and undertake activities such as measuring your water footprint, conducting a waste audit, researching, blogging and sourcing images. We encourage course participants to find, produce, share and discuss resources for sustainability.

The University of Nottingham is an education partner of IEMA, the Institute of Environmental Management & Assessment. IEMA’s role is to support individuals and organisations to set, recognise and achieve global sustainability standards and practice. Nottingham and IEMA are pleased to be working collaboratively on this course.

Why not download some of our free eBooks to help you read around the topic and be ready to join the discussions. Extracts from these books are used throughout the course.

Or find out more in Sarah’s post for the FutureLearn blog: “What do the new UN sustainable development goals mean for you?

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Learning on this course

On every step of the course you can meet other learners, share your ideas and join in with active discussions in the comments.

Who is the course for?

This course is intended for anyone with an interest in sustainability. It does not require any prior experience of studying the subject.

Who will you learn with?

Sarah is Professor of Higher Education at the University of Nottingham. An archaeologist by background, Sarah has been the university's academic lead for 'education for sustainability' since 2011.

Who developed the course?

The University of Nottingham

The University of Nottingham is a research-focused campus university, described as “the nearest thing Britain has to a truly global university” by The Times. As a member of both the Russell Group and Universitas 21 international network, our reach extends across our campuses in the UK, China and Malaysia, with a diverse student body drawn from over 150 countries.

Endorsers and supporters

supported by

IEMA logo

Learning on FutureLearn

Your learning, your rules

  • Courses are split into weeks, activities, and steps to help you keep track of your learning
  • Learn through a mix of bite-sized videos, long- and short-form articles, audio, and practical activities
  • Stay motivated by using the Progress page to keep track of your step completion and assessment scores

Join a global classroom

  • Experience the power of social learning, and get inspired by an international network of learners
  • Share ideas with your peers and course educators on every step of the course
  • Join the conversation by reading, @ing, liking, bookmarking, and replying to comments from others

Map your progress

  • As you work through the course, use notifications and the Progress page to guide your learning
  • Whenever you’re ready, mark each step as complete, you’re in control

Want to know more about learning on FutureLearn? Using FutureLearn

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You can use the hashtag #FLsustain to talk about this course on social media.