We recognise our role as a custodian of Australia’s cultural heritage and acknowledge our responsibility to contribute to a sustainable future for generations to come. We will endeavour to achieve this through embedding sustainable practices across all aspects of our operations, services, and activities.

Environmental Sustainability Policy

We aim to embed sustainable practices across all aspects of our operations, services, and activities. This policy sets out the principles and responsibilities that will guide us in reducing our environmental impact, supporting national emissions reduction targets, and ensuring that our stewardship of collections, buildings, and resources aligns with long-term sustainability.

Emissions Reduction Plan

Our Emissions Reduction Plan maps a pathway and actions to enable us to reduce operational emissions and contribute towards the APS Net Zero 2030 target. While not mandatory for the Library, we are committed to working towards the target, in line with the Net Zero in Government Operations Strategy. The Net Zero in Government Operations Strategy sets out the Australian Government’s approach to achieving net zero greenhouse gas emissions from its operations by 2030 and reinstates public emissions reporting.

The Emissions Reduction Plan includes existing and new initiatives to reduce emissions, with progress tracked in annual reports. This data will contribute to the Net Zero in Government Operations Annual Progress Report, which aggregates emissions data for the entire Australian Government.

Our emissions reduction efforts will target both scope 1 and scope 2 emissions across the entirety of its operations. To meet the APS Net Zero 2030 target, we will continue to implement and expand emissions reduction measures.

Environment and Sustainability Report

The Environment and Sustainability Report 2026 highlights the National Library of Australia's approach to environmental sustainability, including its environmental performance, key initiatives, and management of climate-related risks and opportunities.

The report has been prepared in accordance with section 516A of the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC Act) and the Commonwealth Climate Disclosure (CCD) Policy.

Section 516A of the EPBC Act requires Australian Government agencies to report on their contribution to ecologically sustainable development. This includes demonstrating how they apply the principles of integration, precaution, intergenerational equity, biodiversity, conservation and valuation, and reporting on their environmental performance and actions to minimise environmental impacts.

This report also includes the Library's first Commonwealth Climate Disclosure (CCD) statement. The CCD Policy requires Commonwealth entities to publicly disclose their exposure to climate related risks and opportunities, and the actions they are taking to manage them.

Under the policy, entities must undertake an assessment of climate-related risks and opportunities and publicly report the results either in their annual report or on their website, with a reference included in the annual report.

This is the Library's first year of CCD reporting. The disclosure has been prepared in accordance with the Year 1 reporting requirements of the CCD Policy.