Dear NTU colleagues and students,

I am pleased to announce NTU’s Sustainability Manifesto which will propel our wide-ranging efforts in sustainability over the next 15 years and solidify the University’s position as a leader in sustainability.  This manifesto also charts a 15-year sustainability action plan for carbon neutrality and societal impact.

Our targets and goals in this manifesto are reflected in our Sustainability Framework document.

Our Sustainability Framework is an outgrowth of substantial consultation, feedback and input from internal and external stakeholders and domain experts. It is also fully aligned with the goals established for our five-year strategic plan, NTU 2025, and with Singapore’s Research, Innovation and Enterprise (RIE) 2025 plan and the Singapore Green Plan 2030.

I am also delighted to inform you that we have successfully leveraged our strong financial position to create new mechanisms that support our ambitions and aspirations in the framework document, through several new developments for NTU:

• Moody’s Investors Service today announced NTU’s credit rating of ‘Aaa’, the highest available, alongside a baseline credit assessment of ‘aaa’.  Moody’s has also issued a “stable” outlook rating for NTU.
  

• NTU is also announcing today the establishment of a S$1 billion Medium Term Note programme.  This facility, along with our Sustainability Framework, will give the University access to capital markets through the issuance of Sustainability Linked Bonds from time to time.  OCBC Bank is the sole arranger for NTU’s Medium Term Note programme and serves as our ratings and sustainability structuring advisor.
  

NTU’s Sustainability Framework includes plans to:

• Achieve carbon neutrality by 2035, with 50 per cent reduction in gross emission compared to the baseline year of 2019;
• Achieve 100% Green Mark Platinum certification for all eligible buildings in the main NTU Campus;
• Reduce by 50% NTU’s net energy utilisation, water usage, and waste generation, by March 2026, compared to the levels of 2011, as envisioned in NTU 2025;
• Incorporate sustainability in its common interdisciplinary core curriculum for all undergraduate students;
• Launch new undergraduate, postgraduate and continuing education programme options on different aspects of sustainability;
• Promote sustainable technology solutions for food production and minimise food wastage;
• Create a global network with industry partners, non-governmental agencies and policy makers to develop sustainable solutions;
• Support and promote the principles of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals across the pillars of education, research, innovation and community; and 
• Forge close ties with industry partners who are committed to joining NTU’s sustainability journey. 
  

I am also pleased to announce today that seven multinational organisations – Applied Materials Inc. (USA), Continental AG (Germany), Durapower Ltd. (Singapore), HP Inc. (USA), Hyundai (South Korea), Tata Consultancy Services Ltd. (India) and the Alliance to End Plastic Waste (headquartered in Singapore) – have committed to become key partners in NTU’s sustainability journey.

To seamlessly integrate and coordinate our multi-faceted and long-term approach to sustainability, we are also establishing, with effect from 1 November 2021, a new NTU Sustainability Office.  This Office, headed by Professor Madhavi Srinivasan of the School of Materials Science and Engineering, will coordinate and support all sustainability efforts and activities in a holistic and integrated way.  This Office will directly report to the NTU President.

The Sustainability Framework connects and synergises a wide range of existing initiatives and new aspirations, encompassing the actions of employees and students, and spanning all aspects of the university’s mission in education, research, innovation and service to society and humanity.

The Framework recognises that sustainability is a complex global challenge involving all sectors and all of society.   We will encourage and motivate current and future generations of students and staff to participate in our journey to address some of the most pressing global challenges. Our research, innovations and discoveries through interdisciplinary collaborations with industry and government will provide opportunities and solutions to tackle these challenges at scale.

NTU Singapore is well-positioned to strengthen its leadership role in sustainability. What makes NTU unique is that we have the confluence of infrastructure, technologies, partnerships and talent to ‘walk the walk’ in sustainability.

I look forward to working closely with all of you as we strive to fully realise the aspirations and potential of the OneNTU community for a sustainable future.

With warmest wishes,

Subra Suresh
President, NTU Singapore

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