The Sustainability Champions Network is made up of staff from every corner of the University and is a driving force for change.
Who can be a Sustainability Champion?
Anyone! Any member of staff can be involved. Sustainability Champions lead by example, and inspire others to take positive steps with them in order to create wider change. The Champions play a massive part in helping Greenwich become a leader in sustainability. If you want to find out more check you the Sustainability Champions Yammer Group.
As a Champion you are perfectly placed to help us achieve further sustainable success. You contribute as much time as you can and there are a number of ways which you can make a difference;
- Take a lead by minimising energy consumption.
- Segregate waste and encourage recycling throughout your team.
- Use and promote sustainable transport (liftshare, bus, cycling).
- Get involved with events & activities around the university.
- Volunteer for our gardening projects (Community Edible Garden at Avery Hill Campus perhaps).
- Share & follow our social media channels.
- Challenge your work processes (can you minimise paper use, change your procuring habits or implement staff or student training).
- Think about your role; whether its a lecturer, administrator, porter, advisor, security guard, cleaner, events or outreach, there will be things you could do differently.
- Incorporate sustainable topics or the SDGs into your teaching.
- Attend or provide discussion items for the Sustainability Management Board (SMB) meetings (the SMB discusses sustainable progress at levels of management. If you’re a departmental lead, or would like to represent your area please get in touch (copy in your area lead as needed).
Please do use your initiative, and let us know about what you and your colleagues are doing to benefit the University.
Champion Spotlights:
Mary McCartney at the Faculty of Business is the sustainability driver in her Faculty ensuring all staff and aware of and engaged in key sustainability programmes. She has a welcomed role in running the charity plant sale that raises funds for local charities.
Caroline Troy is a dynamic and committed Champion helping push the agenda in our Medway Campus. She undertakes internal audits for our ISO14001 accreditation, and helps encourage staff in the NRI to the small changes too. “We cancelled our bottled water contract and encouraged staff to drink tap water, we keep track of who travels where and by what means – whether in the UK or overseas – and we have been looking into off-setting our carbon emissions – in 2020/21 is are aiming to reduce our travel emissions within the NRI through a formalised strategy. We also collect data on who our visitors travelled to the campus, our management team meeting has gone paperless, we print publications/invoices/leaflets on recycled paper, and we have participated in Green Week, Climate Week and Fairtrade Fortnight since the beginning of 2012. In addition we are working on making our laboratories greener including looking at projects to improve the energy used by our greenhouses and controlling the energy used by our CT suite. But there is still a lot more to accomplish.”
The HR department including Liz Lawrence and Anna Radley have over many years worked as their Directorate’s Sustainability Champions helping ensure sustainability is integrated in int Directorate functions and activities. They are also central to the initiative to collect food from our Avery Hill Campus site to donate to the local food bank.
Our Library Services undertake annual collections of books that are donated to schools in the developing world. Co-ordinated by one of our Champion, Rhiannon Matthews this project has made a significant difference, sending thousands of books to those who may not otherwise be able to obtain them.
There can never be enough champions so if you are interested in becoming a champion please get in touch. Contact sustainability@gre.ac.uk