Nottingham Trent University has today been named the UK’s most environmentally friendly university by the People & Planet annual Green League, published in the Times Higher Education supplement.
It’s a leap of 18 places for the university, underlining the work that its in-house Environment Team and other departments have undertaken in the past 18 months, developing new green initiatives, policies and practices across all three of the establishment’s campuses.
The Green League recognises commitment to environmental management and performance, awarding points for such factors as the university’s official environment policy, the resources it has dedicated to minimising its carbon footprint, and the use of renewable energy. It is compiled as part of People & Planet’s Go Green campaign, aiming to transform the green performance of the UK’s education sector. People & Planet is a founder member of Stop Climate Chaos, the national coalition of civil society organisations campaignng on climate change.
Nottingham Trent University’s number-one spot comes on the back of an EcoCampus Silver Award received earlier this year for its innovation and achievements in managing its environmental impact. The EcoCampus programme was launched in 2006 to encourage the higher education sector to follow the lead of businesses and organisations in implementing complex Environmental Management Systems. Nottingham Trent University was one of the first 10 pilot universities to subscribe to the scheme and is now one of only seven institutions to have attained the Silver Award.
The refurbishment of the university’s two iconic listed buildings has carefully integrated new greener technologies, and a carbon management plan has been instigated across the board with the ambitious goal of slashing carbon emissions by 10 percent by the 2012/13 academic year.
Almost half the university’s waste is already recycled an a contract with waste removal experts Wastecycle is now being extended to include food waste collection and the removal of organic waste materials for composting. Other initiatives include a dedicated energy-awareness week, a plastic bag amnesty at which bags for life were distributed, and other themed activities for students and staff.
Nottingham Trent University has also secured more than £1,000,000 through the ‘Revolving Green Fund’, which is supported by the Higher Education Funding Council for England and Salix Finance, to invest in new environmental and energy- saving moves over the next year.
Almost a quarter of the money will be used to install new software on the university’s network of 6,500 computers, ensuring they are shut down when not in use. This alone is expected to reduce the university’s CO2 emissions by 640 tonnes a year.
Stephen Jackson, Chief Financial and Operations Officer at Nottingham Trent University, said: “We’re doing everything we can to make the running of Nottingham Trent University as environmentally friendly as possible, so we’re extremely proud of our new position as the new number one ‘green’ university in the country. We’re committed to continuing to help the environment wherever possible.”
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