Jisc and EAUC launch new guide to help universities and colleges act on the environmental impact of AI

Launching today at the 2026 Environmental Association for Universities and Colleges (EAUC) annual conference, new guidance from Jisc and EAUC helps universities and colleges better understand and respond to the rapidly growing environmental impacts of artificial intelligence (AI).

As AI tools become increasingly embedded across teaching, research and estate operations, the new AI and environmental sustainability in post-16 education urges institutions to move beyond passive adoption and take informed, responsible action.

It sets out both the environmental risks associated with AI and the practical opportunities to use it as a force for sustainability.

Environmental, social and ethical issues

While this guidance focuses primarily on environmental impacts, it also recognises the closely linked social sustainability implications associated with AI use. Issues such as equity of access, digital inclusion, workforce impacts, and resource and human rights implications are intrinsically connected to environmental considerations and should not be addressed in isolation.

Progress and progression

AI is already widely used across post-16 education and research, sometimes invisibly. From AI-assisted marking and chatbots to energy management systems, these technologies are becoming part of everyday institutional life.

While progress has been made around the implementation of AI policy, with many colleges and universities now having some form of guidance in place, sustainability considerations can often be missing from the conversation.

A key issue is a lack of transparency from technology providers. Post-16 institutions are increasingly reliant on global AI services, yet often have little visibility of the energy, water or carbon outputs associated with those tools. This makes it difficult to account for AI’s role in institutional emissions, particularly within complex ‘scope 3’ supply chains.

Another more tangible challenge is increasing levels of electronic waste. Before any AI model runs a single query, significant environmental harm has already occurred through processes such as material extraction and hardware manufacturing. Colleges and universities must therefore consider the hardware lifecycle behind the AI services they use, ensuring that sustainability, reuse and responsible end-of-life disposal are factored into procurement, supplier governance and AI policy.

Balancing risks with opportunities

Despite these risks, the guidance emphasises that AI can also support sustainability goals when used thoughtfully.

Practical opportunities include:

• Optimising campus energy use through AI-enabled building management systems
• Supporting climate research and environmental modelling
• Extending equipment lifespans through predictive maintenance
• Automating carbon accounting and reporting
• Using digital simulations to replace energy-intensive physical processes

However, it is important to be aware that claims about AI’s environmental benefits are not always backed by evidence. Institutions are encouraged to critically assess vendor claims and focus on proven, targeted uses.

Practical steps for institutions and users:

• Audit AI use: Build a clear picture of which AI tools are already in use, including those embedded in existing software platforms
• Ask suppliers the right questions: Use procurement processes to request information on energy use, carbon emissions and water consumption
• Educate staff and students: Integrate environmental considerations into AI literacy and training programmes
• Strengthen governance: Include AI’s environmental impact within institutional risk registers and overall operational strategies
• Start today: For users, having a clear rationale for the use of generative AI and using well-constructed prompts to limit unnecessary outputs are just a couple of ways in which anyone can instantly limit the environmental impact of AI

Real progress, that enables the FE and HE sectors to deliver innovative and impact research, teaching and learning whilst realising sustainability ambitions, comes when the whole institution is engaged, recognising that everyone has a role in using AI responsibly and sustainably.

Cal Innes, sustainability subject specialist at Jisc said:

“The speed of AI adoption across colleges and universities, in many cases, is surpassing institutions' ability to keep pace with its consequences, with the environmental dimension being one of the least well understood.

“Our members have expressed a need for support that is both practical and trustworthy, and that's exactly what Jisc and EAUC have aimed to achieve with this guide. What the sector doesn’t need is more hype in either direction.

By providing reliable evidence, honest assessment, and practical guidance and tools people can actually use we hope to move the conversation around AI and sustainability forward.”

Charlotte Bonner, CEO of EAUC said:

”This guidance reflects the strength of partnership between Jisc and EAUC, and the insight of practitioners across the sector who are actively grappling with the challenges and opportunities AI presents.

“It does not claim to have all the answers but instead offers an honest and practical reflection of what we currently know in a rapidly evolving landscape.

“We see this as the start of a wider programme of work to support the sector, and we encourage technology suppliers to play their part by improving transparency and working with us to enable more sustainable AI adoption.”

A call for collective action

Sector-wide collaboration will be essential to drive better transparency, improve reporting standards and influence suppliers when it comes to the sustainable use of AI.

This guide calls for universities, colleges and sector bodies such as Jisc and EAUC to:

• Work together to request clearer environmental data from AI providers
• Share knowledge and emerging practice across the sector
• Engage with evolving regulation and standards for digital sustainability

To support these actions, colleges, universities and sector bodies are invited to register for the upcoming Jisc and EAUC AI and environmental sustainability masterclass taking place online on 14 July 2026.

Jisc and EAUC have also published additional resources to support institutions in translating insight into action. These include practical tools to inform policy development and guidance to strengthen engagement with suppliers, helping universities and colleges to embed sustainability considerations more consistently within procurement, governance and decision-making processes.