Submitted by Jessica Haskell on Tue, 2020-10-27 17:17
It’s been a while since we’ve introduced ourselves and, with the start of the new academic year and the announcement of our new team name, it seemed like a good opportunity to tell you a bit about ourselves.
For those of you who don’t know us yet, we’re the University’s Sustainability Team, previously known as the Environment and Energy Section. We’ve been about since 2013 and work closely with staff and students to share best practice, support behaviour change and strategies, and ultimately help the University in reducing its environmental impact, energy use and carbon emissions. Our new name, the Sustainability Team, reflects not only updated terminology but also the breadth of activities undertaken in support of the University’s Environmental Sustainability Vision, Policy and Strategy. In a nutshell, all the work we do is to support and implement the University’s vision of ‘making a positive impact through outstanding environmental sustainability performance.’
The Sustainability Team is split into three smaller teams: the Carbon and Energy team, the Environment team and the Travel and Transport team. Below we’ve written some quick summaries of the work which falls under each team but more info can always be found on our Meet the Team page.
Carbon and Energy
The Carbon and Energy team provide expertise in working to meet the University’s ambitious science-based targets for carbon emissions reductions.
We start by making sure we understand the energy and utilities that the University uses, then use this knowledge to help departments and institutions improve and drive down the carbon footprint of our activities. We offer training to departments looking to understand their energy usage, work with Estates Division colleagues to deliver low-carbon facilities improvements and feed invaluable information into University strategies and reporting.
We also review the environmental impact of our construction projects and are working to promote a move away from the fossil natural gas that is currently used to heat most of our estate.
It's broad and it's complicated, but all the more rewarding and important for it!
Environment
As the name suggests, the Environment team plays an important role in helping the University meet its environmental aims and targets. As well as taking the lead on strategies to protect and enhance biodiversity on the University’s estate, and to cut waste and improve recycling performance within the University's buildings, one of our top priorities is to involve staff and students to help create a sustainable and inspiring University.
Our communications and engagement work has many strands but one of our first steps is to share information on environmental sustainability, through a range of channels like our website and Greenlines newsletter. We also work directly with staff and students to encourage and support action on environmental sustainability, predominantly through the Green Impact initiative and our network of Environment and Energy Coordinators. Every year we work with hundreds of fantastic staff and students whose dedication, knowledge and creativity makes fundamental improvements to the environmental performance of their places of work or study.
Our team also develops and implements the University’s Environmental Management System and oversees the production of the University’s annual environmental sustainability reports. Both of these key areas of work not only help us to keep track of our progress, but also identify areas where we need to improve.
Travel and Transport
Over in the Transport team, we work to minimise the University’s environmental footprint from transport and to reduce congestion in Cambridge. We do this by implementing schemes based on the aims and commitments laid out in the University Transport Strategy.
The commitments in the strategy are designed to improve the sustainability, affordability and convenience of travel to and around Cambridge. We deliver schemes in three broad categories: public transport schemes including the Universal Bus service; infrastructure schemes like improvements to cycle parking and installation of pool-bike hubs; and engagement or enabling schemes like Dr Bike, cycle training and the installation of smart panels in University buildings.
We work closely with teams and departments across the University, as well as other organisations outside the University like the Greater Cambridge Partnership, the County Council and public transport providers to make sure the University’s needs and future aspirations for development can be delivered in the most sustainable way possible.
Like the rest of the Sustainability Team, we have many projects on the go including working towards 100% electrification of the University’s vehicle fleet by 2030, electrification of the Universal bus service, improving the University’s approach to car parking permits and providing transport support for Eddington, the University’s sustainable development in the North West of Cambridge.
We also conduct the annual staff and student travel surveys every year in October (yes they are live NOW!), the results from these surveys provide us with valuable data to monitor the impact our schemes are having on University travel patterns, identify where interventions are required and calculate the environment impact of University travel.
We hope this has been a useful intro if you are new to the University or just needed a refresher. Safe to say that these high-level summaries do not touch on the partnership work and collaboration, both internally and externally, which is a core aspect of our everyday work.