University of Melbourne Declared Australia’s Most Sustainable

The University of Melbourne has secured the title as Australia’s most sustainable university and retained its position as one of the top ten sustainaible universityes in the world,

The QS World University Rankings: Sustainability were released today by global higher education experts QS Quacquarelli Symonds.

The 2025 rankings include 1,744 universities from 107 countries and territories, a significant increase from 1,397 institutions across 95 countries last year. In comparison, the inaugural 2023 rankings featured just 700 institutions.

Australia is home to 38 ranked universities, with 14 institutions included in the top 100 headed by the University of Melbourne ranked ninth globally for sustainability.

• Australia ranks second globally in this year’s sustainability rankings, based on the overall average score of its universities—positioned behind New Zealand and ahead of Belgium, Canada, and the Netherlands.
• The University of Melbourne leads nationally, retaining its impressive 9th position globally.
• Overall, eight Australian universities are ranked among the global top 50, with 14 securing places in the top 100.
• Australia excels across key lenses, ranking first worldwide the Health and Wellbeing lens, second globally on Impact of Education and third in both the Governance and Equality lenses

Best in Australia in QS University World Rankings: Sustainability 2025

Ben Sowter, QS Vice President, said Australian universities are were stepping up to the plate when it comes to the numerous sustainability crises the world is facing.

“Whether that be the University of Melbourne’s Wattle Fellowships aiming to produce tomorrow’s leaders on global sustainability, Curtin University hosting a landmark Net Zero forum, La Trobe University creating the largest urban solar farm in Victoria or the University of Sydney’s Sydney Biomedical tackling some of the globe’s most complex health challenges, institutions across the country are inspiring change and making real-life impact,” he said.

“However, it is our responsibility to acknowledge that this is a rapidly evolving area of performance. These relative positions should not overshadow the reality that significant progress is still needed, even among the leaders on this list.

“Universities have the potential—and indeed the aspiration—to be trailblazers in sustainability. We hope these metrics, and their inclusion in our flagship rankings, empower institutions to garner the necessary support from stakeholders to embrace their vital role in shaping the future of humanity.”

Gobally, the University of Toronto retains its position as the top-ranked university, followed by ETH Zurich – Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in second place. Lund University in Sweden and the University of California, Berkeley (UCB) in the United States share the third spot.