SUSTAIN UnConference

The SUSTAIN UnConference is a full day of collaborative sessions where people from across the Midlands come together to explore the sustainability challenges they’re facing right now.

Thursday 17th September 2026University of Birmingham
Centre for Responsible Business
Birmingham Business School

Sustain is built on a participant‑led approach

We bring 200+ people together who don’t usually meet.

We support trained facilitators and volunteers to hold the space.

We create the structure for open, honest, practical conversations.

You shape the agenda, the sessions, the insights, and the outcomes.

What to expect on the day

After a short welcome, the room builds its own agenda. The topics come from you, the people in it, not from us. Challenges, case studies, ideas and questions are shared openly, and the day takes shape around what matters most to the group.

Once the agenda is set, a series of parallel, participant‑led sessions unfold across the venue. You’re free to move between them. The Law of Two Feet invites everyone to use their two feet and move to a session where they can contribute or learn the most.

It’s a safe, inclusive and equitable environment.

Everyone brings something — knowledge, experience, curiosity, questions.

No one is more important than anyone else in the room.

Networks form quickly. Conversations move with the energy in the room. The structure holds everything in place, but the content, direction and outcomes are driven entirely by you.

You decide the agenda. You pick the topics that matter.
You move the conversation forward.

View 2026 Itinerary

Why should you join?

The UnConference offers you:

  • a voice in the conversations that matter to you
  • new connections and new perspectives
  • practical next steps and collaborations that continue long after the day
  • a sense of shared purpose and momentum
  • a reminder that there’s a wide, diverse network to lean on when sustainability work feels tough

Who’s it for?

A mix of people who care about shaping a sustainable future:

  • Sustainability professionals and business decision‑makers
  • Local authority teams
  • Educators and young people
  • Community organisers and social entrepreneurs
  • Engineers, architects, growers, analysts, creatives, investors
  • Anyone working on sustainability challenges

If you’re ready to contribute, learn, and act, you belong in the room.

Chatham House Rule

To support open, honest discussion, the SUSTAIN UnConference operates under the “Chatham House Rule”:

You’re free to use the ideas and insights shared — but not to attribute them to individuals or organisations.

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2026 TICKETS

Tickets are limited and sold out early last year.

Book Tickets HereApply for A Bursary Ticket

Join the SUSTAIN 2026 Early Access Waitlist!

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