UCT has set the following target:

Net Zero emissions by 2050 (Scope 1 and 2)

This requires a 2 – 5% reduction in emissions per annum from 2019* (pre-COVID lockdown).

The UCT strategy was published in early 2020, before the COVID-19 lockdowns, proposed 2020 as the baseline year, which turned out to be an inappropriate baseline year due to the forced inactivity with unrealistically low emissions levels due to the COVID lockdown. 2019 was therefore subsequently selected as the baseline year, as the most recent pre-COVID lockdown year.

Targets are based on combined Scope 1, 2 and Other Direct Emissions. As expected, post COVID lockdowns the activity on campus began to normalise the following year and consequently these emissions increased by 16% in 2021. With most activity returning to pre-Covid levels, UCT saw a 0.5% increase in emissions between 2021 and 2022 followed by a 2% decrease between 2022 and 2023, and a 3% increase between 2023 and 2024. While levels have increased after this period of forced reductions, they have not increased as high as they were prior to the COVID-19 lockdowns, showing an overall 17% decrease in UCT’s Scope 1, 2 and Other Direct emissions between 2019 and 2024.