The main driving force of the Excellence project undertaken by Jesus College this year has been that they wish to drastically minimise their environmental footprint, including reducing waste and carbon emissions.
In a continuation of “The Change Is on Us” campaign, launched in spring 2021, Jesus College has taken a step further and created satellite recycling stations all around the College. As part of their 2021/2022 Excellence project, in December 2021 the College decided that, in partnership with Veolia, they would create four new satellite recycling points.
These new recycling points are located at the following locations: Chapel Court, Housekeeping Lodge, Lower Park Street and the Forum Building. General waste, dry mixed recycling, food waste and mixed glass are the types of waste being collected so far. The College plans to recycle more waste streams in future which bodes well for the longevity of this project.
The project aim was not limited to only increasing the places that recycling could occur across College, but also to have an educational benefit regarding advertising the recycling stations, how to use them properly and their impact as well as following/offering online training courses designed to help them manage their waste using Veolia eLearning Hub.
As they have successfully attained an Excellence award, we can happily report that not only have they implemented these recycling points, but none of their waste ends up in landfill, with about 73% of it being completely recycled. Over the last six months, they also have significantly reduced their carbon emissions and saved 12,210 kilograms of CO2. More broadly across the College, they have succeeded in significantly improving the recycling culture by providing College members and visitors with a clearer vision of their project and why it matters.
In evaluating the success of their project, they drew special attention to the importance of data (the account with Veolia) to monitor their recycling scheme effectiveness. They also note how having the buy in from the Manciple, the Jesus College Student Union (JSCU) and Middle Combination Room (MCR) green officers, and members of the catering team has been integral to their success.
They are more than happy to share their improved waste management and recycling scheme with other Colleges and will continue to educate their community to the rising number of sustainability issues.
Jo Dell’Orto, Manager of the Roost café bar, who spearheaded the project with former Roost employee and Jesus resident, Justine Lancelin, said:
“It’s great to see that many people now bring their waste to the Roost throughout the day to be recycled.
“We hope to diversify the type of waste collected, offering the possibility to collect plastic bottles in the near future, and we are already thinking of other changes we could implement for instance, switching from paper to reusable metal straws.”
Stuart Websdale, Domestic Bursar, said:
“I am extremely proud of the work of Jo and Justine and I’m grateful to the wider College community who have embraced this initiative, and others, as we seek to collectively achieve our ambitious sustainability goals and be a leading academic institution in our commitment to tackling climate change.”
We sincerely congratulate them on their efforts. If you are interested in their scheme for your own College, please email sustainability@admin.cam.ac.uk or m.dellorto@jesus.cam.ac.uk
Written by: Susie Cook, Communications and Engagement Coordinator