What's happening
WildVolunteering Student Bursary Scheme
Our 'What's happening' section provides you with a summary all of the latest information on environmental and energy projects and events.
Winter 2012
WildVolunteering Bursary Project
The WildVolunteering Bursary Project list is now complete along with details of each project and how to book an appointment. We have a range of projects to suit a variety of skills from wildlife interpretation board design to bat, bird, moth and flower surveys. Interviews for the projects commence on Monday 19 November and run for two weeks.
Environmental Champions Meeting
The next Environmental Champions Meeting is on Wednesday 21 November in Room B116 at Kedleston Road. If you are in Buxton please join us in the Boardroom to video conference. Both staff and students are very welcome.
Our Environment and You
Take a look at our latest Environment and You booklet (1.28 mb, PDF) which details the University's progress to date with meeting our environmental objectives and targets and other initiatives that we are involved in.
Sustainable Food - Food For Life Accreditation
We are pleased to report that we are working towards achieving the Soil Associations Food for Life Catering Mark for the Bistro in Buxton. This involves making sure that the food we serve is:
- Freshly prepared
- Seasonal
- Free from controversial additives
- Better for animal welfare
NUS - Green Impact Students' Union
We are currently working with UDSU to help them achieve Bronze in the NUS Green Impact Students' Unioin. Green Impact Students' Union is an environmental accreditation programme with an awards element designed specifically for students' unions.
Autumn 2012
Freshers Week
Calling all new students! Come along and visit our stand during Freshers Week at Derby (24 September 2012) and Buxton (27 September 2012) to pick up a free UK manufactured biodegradable sports drink bottle or a recycled plastic mug. We look forward to meeting you then!
Bulb Planting
Come along and help plant bulbs in Sturgess Fields (2 October 2012). This is open to staff and students. If you are interested in taking part, please contact Lynn Richards on Ext: 1093 or l.richards@derby.ac.uk
Summer 2012
Quiet Revolution Turbine - update
You may have noticed that the Quiet Revolution Turbine on the main drive of our Kedleston Road Campus hasn't been rotating for the last couple of weeks. The reason for this is it requires a number of updates. These were identified during an annual service in July. It should be back up and running by the end of August.
Green Education Declaration 2012
People & Planet is calling on Vice-Chancellors and other associated education organisations to sign up to the Green Education Declaration to commit to working towards a greener higher education sector. We are proud to announce that the University of Derby is one of the first signatories of this agreement.
Tree Survey at Sturgess
We have carried out a Tree Survey at Sturgess Fields to assess the health and safety of the woodland areas but also identify areas where we could plant additional trees to enhance biodiversity. Undertaking a survey is a requirement of our Biodiversity Action Plan (BAP). Recent works at Sturgess has included making improvements to existing footpaths. Plans are in place to plant bulbs during the autumn to ensure that next spring, Sturgess is awash with colour.
Tree Survey and Ecolgocal Survey at Oaklands Manor
We have also carried out a Tree Survey at Oaklands Manor to assess the health and safety of the woodland area of our newly acquired outdoor pursuits centre. An initial ecological survey has also been completed to identify the different types of land we have and how best this should be managed with biodiversity in mind.
Wild Volunteering Student Bursary Scheme
Students at the University of Derby can now apply for an award to carry out environmental projects in Derby. The university is working in partnership with WildDerby and has a number of opportunities on offer from helping with event organisation to bird, moth and wild flower surveys. Details of the projects available and next steps are available on the Community Relations pages.
Spring 2012
View a slide show of our Go Green Week.
We held a Go Green Week at the end of February 2012 with a different environmental theme each day. All week long we asked staff and students to make environmental pledges which they would be prepared to keep to help cut carbon emissions from daily life. Interestingly these could be divided into seven categories with pledges ranging from growing more vegetables and eating less meat to raising environmental awareness amongst family and friends. The seven categories and their percentages of popularity were:
- Transport - 31%
- Emissions from food production - 30%
- Energy - 21%
- Recycling - 7%
- Water - 5%
- Carbon emissions from procurement - 4%
- Environmental awareness raising - 2%
Meat Free Monday
On Monday we encouraged staff and students to have a meat free day. Did you know that producing a pound of beef creates the same amount of greenhouse gas as driving for 77 miles and the amount of greenhouse gas a cow produces annually is the equivalent of driving 7,800 miles!
To produce 1 kilo of beef it requires 15,000 litres of water whereas in comparison, to produce 1 kilo of cereal or grain, it requires between 400 and 1,700 litres of water. Giving up meat one day a week doesn't seem too difficult when you see how much money and carbon you could save.
Switch Off Tuesday for lower energy emissions
Everyone knows the theory behind energy and carbon emissions but did you know there are grants available for home energy efficiency measures such as loft and cavity wall insulation or the installation of renewable energy sources? More information is available at The Green Deal.
Car Free Wednesday
A mad midweek dash around a slalom course on the Segway was enjoyed by many. We also managed to cram 9 people into a Toyota IQ in the Atrium - plus the Vice Chancellor in the boot!
On the day we had a register for staff and students to leave their details for car sharing. If you want to try car sharing but didn't get chance to add your name to the list, email your contact details and where you travel from to the Environmental Services team: Lynn Richards l.richards@derby.ac.uk or Anne Downes a.downes@derby.ac.uk.
Give it up for the Environment
Environmental volunteering was made all the more interesting by the added attraction of Dick and Dom, 2 rescued barn owls brought in by the Environment Projects Officer for WildDerby. Both Derbyshire Wildlife Trust and WildDerby were encouraged by the number of people signing up to be members of the Trust and to volunteer.
Waste not Friday
Friday saw a days worth of waste tipped in the Atrium. It was a lot! We then asked the Ethics and Environment Officer from UDSU to release her artistic side and turn the waste into art. During the day, information was made available on how our waste is recycled and what you can do to play your part in ensuring that we meet our recycling target of 50% by 2013.
