What works, from people who have tried it
The second part of this weekend’s analysis sets out what universities can actually do to build belonging: contact in the first fortnight, small groups that persist across a year, and staff who know names. The absence of those explains why students who commute or study part-time report the lowest belonging — they meet the fewest of the same people twice. Making friends at university covers it from the other side.
A university writes emissions targets into its governance
Warwick has formalised sustainability as a strategic goal, committing to cut direct greenhouse gas emissions by 60 per cent by 2030 and 80 per cent by 2035 against a 2018-19 baseline. Targets written into governance are harder to abandon than pledges, which is what student campaigns on divestment and energy have been asking for.