Can lean management practices in the operations of the universities lead to sustainability?

Sustainability in the educational curriculum of the higher education providers like universities has received considerable attention due to its importance in practice in most of the industry sectors. However, when it comes to having a sustainable operation in universities, limited evidence is found in both theory and practice. The few research papers that addressed the issue, did not quite address the underlying barriers by proposing effective solutions. This research aims to propose solutions to this problem by examining if lean practices would be able to facilitate environmental sustainability in the universities’ operation in the UK.