RMIT Sustainability Week 2025: Be the spark – Lead the future

RMIT Vietnam’s Sustainability Week 2025 brought together over 1000 participants, including students, staff, industry partners, and the wider community, for a vibrant celebration of innovation, collaboration, and collective action toward a more sustainable future.

Held from 3 to 10 November, this year’s event revolved around the theme “Sustainability in Action”, showcasing how RMIT transforms its sustainability vision into real impact across teaching, research, operations, and community engagement.

Professor Julia Gaimster, Strategic Advisor to the Pro Vice-Chancellor of RMIT Vietnam, said: “At RMIT, sustainability is a guiding vision that shapes our teaching, research, operations, and the way we engage with and impact our communities. Every choice we make, every action we take, has the power to spark meaningful change.”

She added that Sustainability Week serves as a living expression of this vision - a platform to celebrate innovation, champion sustainability leadership, and inspire meaningful engagement across the University and the communities it serves.

Mr Matthew McCall-Peat, Associate Director of Capital Works - Vietnam Infrastructure at RMIT Vietnam, shared about this year’s highlights: “From inspiring talks and interactive workshops to showcases and community challenges, every activity is designed to spark ideas and empower our community, partners, and the wider public to drive change together and be the spark that leads the future.”

The event featured four key pillars, reflecting how RMIT brings its sustainability vision to life by integrating green practices into every aspect of the University’s operations. 

The 17 SDGs Exhibition celebrated RMIT Vietnam’s contributions to the 17 UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), featuring projects that demonstrated impact across research, education, and community impact. The exhibition highlighted a collaborative ecosystem that connects academia, students, industry, and public-private organisations to create shared value for people and the planet.

The Green Week Challenge, powered by the AgreenChoice platform, inspired participants to form and sustain green habits. Every action, from mindful consumption to daily choices, contributed to measurable change, helping track behavioural transformation and demonstrate the University’s real sustainability impact.

More than 928 green actions were recorded, each representing a concrete step that shows the RMIT community’s spirit of learning, working, and living sustainably.

The Sustainable Event Partnership embedded sustainability principles into event design and delivery. Together with its partners, the University reduced environmental impact and amplified sustainability education, transforming each event into a learning space where sustainable practices were visible, tangible, and inspiring.

As part of the Sustainable Voices Platform, RMIT University hosted 12 workshops, panel discussions, and interdisciplinary experiential activities covering topics such as the application of science and technology, food waste reduction, the use of natural and local materials, sustainable design, mental wellbeing, and responsible career orientation.

The series was co-created with more than 10 academic and industry partners, bringing together lecturers, students, and experts from various fields to exchange ideas, share experiences, and apply sustainable knowledge in practice.

The week culminated with the Sustainability Leaders Forum, where inspiration turned into connection and connection evolved into collaboration. The closing event celebrated partnerships, ideas, and actions sparked throughout the week and transformed them into pathways for future collaboration. Participants were invited to “Share Your Spark”, discovering peers who share their sustainability passions and co-designing personal commitments to become the next generation of sustainability leaders.

Hoang Pham Quynh Anh, a Logistics and Supply Chain Management student and Sustainability Ambassador, said: “To me, sustainability means recognising that every action matters, and that small daily choices can create a better future. At RMIT, I’m fortunate to learn in an environment that encourages sustainable living beyond the classroom. I practise green habits like carrying a reusable bottle, consuming responsibly, and inspiring others to do the same.

“As a Sustainability Ambassador, I contribute to initiatives that promote a greener campus. These experiences remind me that sustainability isn’t just about doing right - it’s about doing it together.”

Through the second edition of Sustainability Week, RMIT Vietnam reaffirmed its commitment to leading transformative change through education, research, and collaboration. By empowering young people and connecting sectors across academia, industry, and community, RMIT continues to shape a future where sustainability leadership is collective, regenerative, and real.

Professor Gaimster concluded: “We hope RMIT students will leave behind not just ideas, but a living legacy of purpose - one that turns knowledge into action, innovation into impact, and sustainability into a shared way of life for their communities."

Story: June Pham