Plant Based Universities

Plant-Based Universities Society is part of the global Plant-Based Universities campaign.

We want 100% just and sustainable plant-based catering at the University of Aberdeen to tackle the climate and nature crises.

​Universities have the power, and with it the responsibility, to make sustainable choices easy, affordable, and inclusive — helping individuals take part in the solutions to the climate and nature crises. For too long, the burden of change has been placed solely on individuals, while the systems shaping our choices have stayed the same. On most campuses, eating sustainably is still harder than it should be: options are limited, often unaffordable, and treated as secondary rather than central to climate action. By recognising the importance of plant-based food and making it the default, universities can empower their communities to live their values and lead the transition our future depends on. What happens on campuses shapes society: the debates in lecture halls, the culture in student unions, the values graduates take into the world. When universities act on climate, it shifts what people see as normal, possible, and necessary. And history is clear: universities don’t make these changes on their own. It takes students and staff power to convince institutions to practise what they teach, and to spark the wider cultural shift we need to create an inclusive, fair and sustainable food system.

The campaign began in late 2021 at three universities in the UK, calling on universities to transition to 100% just and sustainable plant-based catering to tackle the climate and nature crises. The campaign quickly spread to more than 20 universities across the country within a year!  It was in late 2023 that Plant-Based Universities spread further to countries including Austria and Germany, with the Student's Council at the University of Graz giving their formal support to the campaign. In 2024 and 2025 it spread even further, bringing up a total of 9 different countries with campaigns: UK, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, France, Belgium, The Netherlands, Italy, and Poland, and it also got the support of the UK's National Union of Students. The campaign currently have active campaigns in over 70 universities all across Europe, run by student teams on their campuses, and expect to continue growing.

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