Submitted by Susannah Cook on Wed, 2023-01-18 12:45
What does your position involve?
I’m the Sustainability Coordinator. I will be leading on the development of the University-wide waste strategy and its associated activities, along with working alongside our new waste contractor to deliver on KPIs, including our commitment to zero waste to landfill. I will also be supporting the Assistant Sustainability Manager with the EMS (Environmental Management System) and acting as the main point of contact for matters relating to environmental legislation.
What is your (education/qualification) background and how did you get here?
I have a social science background with a BA in Politics and MA in International Development. My final study sparked my interest in waste and sustainable food, this looked at the environmental impacts of vegan, vegetarian and omnivorous diets.
What were you doing before joining the Sustainability Team?
I started my career in community development and my first step into sustainability was to manage a residential energy awareness project. I then was fortunate enough to work on a circular economy project for 18 months, supporting businesses in the tourism and leisure industry in Great Yarmouth to reduce their waste, as well as some creative behaviour change campaigns. During this time, I worked on the Carbon Reduction Action Plan for the Borough Council which set out initial targets on how the authority will meet their commitment to be net zero by 2035. I decided to try another area of sustainability and took a transport role at Cambridgeshire County Council where I primarily focused on Travel to Work Surveys before this fantastic role popped up, which I had to apply for!
What are you looking forward to getting your teeth into in the coming year?
In general terms, I’m really looking forward to supporting the university to reduce its waste and all the exciting projects that come with that. On a side note, I’m very excited to visit the MRF (Material Recoveries Facility) and the farm too!!!
Who is your inspirational figure (real or fictional)?
Big Dave Attenborough, who else?
Do you have any hobbies?
Big football and Arsenal fan, love to cook from scratch and I’m happiest up a mountain or on the beach.
What do you think is the biggest environmental challenge?
There are so many, it is difficult to choose the ‘biggest’ - moving away from fossil fuels fast enough on a global scale has to be up there, due to the vested interests and lack of urgency/action shown, coupled with getting renewable technology ready/scalable to meet extra demand for electricity. Shout out to the nature crisis here though, this area of sustainability is overlooked in certain sections of society.
What gets you out of bed (and into work) in the morning?
Knowing that my work is aimed at fighting the two most important challenges of our time, in the climate and nature crises.
What is your environment-related pet hate?
Fake grass, absolutely hideous stuff and getting more popular in UK gardens. Seriously why?
What is your proudest professional achievement?
I’ve been lucky enough to be involved in lots of quirky projects since I started my so far, (short!) career in 2019. I don’t have a standout moment that comes to mind, but I was particularly pleased with successfully rolling out on the-go-recycling with low contamination in a really difficult context to do this in.
What is your favourite green gadget?
Boring but practical one here – love a smart meter display where you can see your energy usage in real time, especially if it shows per device.
First impressions of Cambridge?
I have visited a number of times and what always stands out to me as someone from Norfolk, is the architecture and how many people cycle!