Submitted by Grainne Kennedy on Tue, 2019-06-25 17:15
There are so many staff and students who go above and beyond to make environmental improvements in departments and Colleges. These individuals may think that their efforts go unnoticed, but that is not the case. The Environment and Energy section receive many submissions each year for the Green Impact Special Awards, and this year was no different. These awards allow staff and students to secretly nominate those who they feel are making the biggest difference.
The Special Awards were given out at the Green Impact Awards ceremony on 21 June, and it was a lovely sight to see how surprised and touched these staff and students were that their efforts had been recognised and appreciated.
Student Leadership Award.
The standard of submissions for this award was so high that the Environment and Energy team decided to give the award to two students instead of one. The students chosen were Gráinne Hutton (figure 1) of Murray Edwards College and Izzy Rudd of Clare College.
Gráinne has been dedicated to the cause at Murray Edwards College, setting up a Green Formal Hall, with relevant speakers and sustainable food and drink was sourced. Gráinne also set up a Cambridge branch of 'Nu Wardrobe' which facilitates wardrobe sharing to reduce reliance on fast fashion. Finally, Gráinne worked hard across the year to raise awareness of environmental issues through communications and events.
Izzy Rudd was heavily involved with Clare College’s Green Impact team, setting up many initiatives such as Clothes Swaps and food waste composting, which required the buy in of both staff and students. Finally, Izzy is also involved in Clare College’s new Sustainable Investment Society.
Figure 1: Gráinne Hutton and her reward
Sustainability Hero Award
Yet again, it was difficult to choose just one Sustainability Hero from the submissions we received. In the end we decided to pick two staff heroes, with two very different approaches. The staff recognised were Chris Rolfe of Geography (figure 2) and Emma Cantu of POLIS (main picture).
Chris's energy and commitment to Green Impact has led the Geography Science Laboratories to achieve the Platinum Green Impact Labs award for three years running, with 'green' practices embedded within and beyond the lab. This incorporation of ‘green’ practices was recently demonstrated by the incorporation of beach cleans (figure 3) into coastal field trips.
Emma is heavily involved with sustainability in the Alison Richard Building, she raises awareness through a green newsletter but has also set up new recycling schemes, Repair Cafes and Clothes Swaps. The wildlife of the Sidgwick site has benefitted from Emma’s care as she has set up bird boxes around the site, has planted a balcony with bee-friendly flowers and she educates others on the importance of nature by leading nature walks.
Figure 2: Chris Rolfe
Community Action Award
The Murray Edwards Gardens team received the Community Action Award for their work partnering with local community groups, and for encouraging enjoyment of the gardens by students and local people alike. Sustainability is a key part of how these gardens are managed; areas within the gardens have been managed for wild species, ethical pest use is utilised and upcycled materials are used where possible. Visitors to the gardens learn about sustainability but they can also forage in the orchards or get involved in the sharing of vegetables and herbs grown in the gardens.
Innovation for Engagement Award
Garden teams were popular in nominations as another garden team, Girton College, won the Innovation for Engagement Award. This award was given in recognition of the strides made to engage people in sustainability using innovative, fun techniques. Girton College did this through initiatives such as a volunteer gardening program offering allotments to students, frequent garden walks, fruit picking, woodland walks, facilitating moth surveys, and working with chefs to cultivate and grow herb to be used in the College food. Staff and students were given so many opportunities to engage with the nature that surrounds the College.
Environmental Improvement Award
The final award of the afternoon was given to Robinson College. This year Robinson College installed a Water Source Heat Pump, using the water from Bin Brook to provide heating for one of College’s largest buildings. The 300 kilowatt system extracts heat from the watercourse to support the College’s main boiler. The complex project involved the installation of a small weir including an eel bridge, and will payback in six years, as well as ensuring heat comes from a low carbon source.
Figure 3: Some of the waste collected by Chris Rolfe on a Geography field trip to Skallingen Denmark.