Welcome to your June newsletter
Find out more about Sustainability at York in June 2024.
Student Switch Off Final Leaderboard
Student Switch Off Final Leaderboard revealed!
Regrettably, there was an error in the published June newsletter. After further verification, the Student Switch Off energy competition leaderboard has changed revealing a new top 3.
Students living in David Kato College have come top of the Leaderboard! Runners up are Wentworth in second place and Halifax in third place.
The competition challenges students living in College accommodation to take positive action on climate change; it supports and encourages students to live sustainably with a specific focus on saving energy and water, as well as recycling and reducing waste.
A huge thank you to all students for making so many positive actions towards saving energy. Every light switched off, socket unplugged or kettle boiled (with just the right amount of water in) has helped to reduce energy consumption.
York Festival of Ideas
York Festival of Ideas 2024 has a wide range of inspiring events to attend and engage with, both in person and online - most of them free. A sample of the sustainability themed events in this year’s programme is outlined below. You can see the full list of natural world events on the Festival website.
Daniel C Abel
Tuesday 4 June, 6pm to 7pm
Avoiding tired factoids, shark authority Daniel Abel gives new bite to essential information about sharks, including their adaptations as top predators, 450-million-year evolution, behavioural complexity, ecological importance, existential threats, and often sensationalised appearances in popular culture, from Jaws to Shark Week.
How Do Plants Become Medicines?
Jenny Hayes
Saturday 8 June, 1.30pm to 2.30pm (in-person)
Many of the medicines we use today have their origins in plants such as willow, poppy, foxglove and sweet wormwood. Jenny Hayes of the University of York discusses the discovery of these medicines, as well as self-medication in animals including chimpanzees and cats. Join Jenny to find out how herbal extracts are developed into pure drugs, and how the scientific search for new drugs continues to take inspiration from nature.
Siddarth Shrikanth
Sunday 9 June, 12pm to 1pm (in-person)
The climate movement has gathered some pace but what about the other, inextricably linked crisis in biodiversity? Siddarth Shrikanth, an expert in green investing, will set out how we can use groundbreaking natural capital frameworks - ways of valuing services that nature provides - to make our economies work with, not against, our living planet.
Sunday 9 June, 2.30pm to 3.30pm (in-person)
Poo can be a real problem, but also an opportunity. With the average human producing 145kg of poo a year and a dairy cow 62kg per day, there’s certainly plenty of it to do something with. Join us as our expert panel of speakers explores the problems and opportunities arising from the management of our poo, revealing how it can be used to find solutions to climate change. Find out how this natural resource can be turned into a range of sustainable options, including bio-energy and fertilisers that are returned to the land.
Join an upcoming Climate Fresk Workshop
Want to help tackle climate change but don’t have the time to become a climate scientist? In just three hours, the collaborative Climate Fresk workshop will teach you the fundamental science behind climate change and empower you to take action. In just 3 hours, this workshop will teach you the fundamental science behind climate change and empower you to take action. Climate Fresk runs all over the world and supports the power of small scale discussions creating large scale change towards climate in terms of attitudes and action. Suitable for ages 16+. Join the Climate Fresk on Wednesday 12 June 2024, 2.45pm to 6pm as part of the Festival of Ideas sign up using this form.
Alumni Ambassador Applications Open for 2024
The Alumni and Volunteering Team are looking for students graduating in 2024 to join their flagship program. As one of the University of York's Alumni Ambassadors, you'll join a thriving network of Alumni, build relationships and access experience and opportunities that will help result in personal and professional growth. You'll also get the chance to support the University, sharing your story through career talks, speaker events, written profiles and buddying programmes.
For more information about the programme and details of how to apply, please contact the Alumni and Volunteering Team at oppa-volunteering@york.ac.uk.
Green Impact team members: don’t forget to claim your digital badge
All those involved in a Green Impact team this year are eligible for a Green Impact team member digital badge. The digital badge can be used to showcase your participation in Green Impact, and the associated skills and professional development from being part of a Green Impact team. Digital badges are issued to all individuals who have been involved in their Green Impact team, and are in addition to your team’s Green Impact award (which will be announced at the awards ceremony!).
To claim your digital badge, please take our short feedback survey to let us know how you found Green Impact, and what we can do to improve the programme in the future. At the end of the survey, you will be prompted to fill in your details for a Green Impact Team Member digital badge.
Get Ready for the Green Impact Awards
We have now completed the audits for all this year’s Green Impact programme. Over 30 teams submitted their Toolkits or Special Projects and we will reveal what award levels they achieved at a celebratory event on 13 June. All team members, including student GIPAS, have been invited - we hope to see you there!
If you would like to get involved in a Green Impact team in 2024-25, let us know by emailing Greenimpact@york.ac.uk and watch this space for details of the 2024/25 programme launch later in the year!
Students Moving out Checklist
We hope all students have had a great year in York! It’s nearly time to move out for many of you, so it’s good to start thinking about waste disposal as early as possible.
Before disposing of something in your general waste bin, consider if someone else might be able to make use of it. The BHF red banks allow you to donate your unwanted items to the British Heart Foundation. There are big red donation banks at every College (near external bin stores) and also donation boxes at 9 laundry rooms. Find out more about the British Heart Foundation and locate your nearest on campus BHF donation bank.
Last year York students helped divert 29.1 tonnes of unwanted items from disposal by donating to the British Heart Foundation - that’s 3642 bags of reusable items! These were sold through the York BHF shops. This raised an incredible £50,000 to help power life saving research into heart and circulatory disease and all things that cause them.
Check out our social media channels for the latest messages and please share widely.
Big Butterfly Count
The Big Butterfly Count is a UK-wide survey aimed at helping us assess the health of our environment simply by counting the amount and type of butterflies (and some day-flying moths) we see. Find out more and get involved here.
Bike Week 10-16 June 2024
Cycling has well known health benefits and numerous environmental benefits by reducing traffic. Bike Week, delivered by Cycling UK, is an annual celebration to showcase cycling. Thousands of people all over the UK enjoy the simple pleasure of riding a bike.
Book your bike in for a FREE service with the Bike Doctor this summer - check the available dates and locations. You will need to use your University of York email to gain access.
Clean Air Day – 20 June
Every year, air pollution causes up to 36,000 deaths in the UK. The World Health Organisation and the UK Government recognise that air pollution is the largest environmental health risk we face today. How can you get involved this Clean Air Day? Walk or cycle to work. Even car-sharing or taking a bus or train helps to reduce air pollution if your commute is a bit too far by foot or bike. Alternatively contact your local MP and encourage them to act to reduce air pollution in your community.
Sustainability in the news
- Renewable energy passes 30% of world’s electricity supply, The Guardian
- Isle of Wight-size iceberg breaks from Antarctica, BBC News
- Green infrastructure plans need to consider historical racial inequalities, Science Daily
- Scaling up: the app that’s transforming lives in South African fishing communities, The Guardian
- A leading marine biologist advocates for optimism in climate change discussions, Daily Climate
- Zero-carbon cement process could slash emissions from construction, New Scientist
- Should London become a 'sponge city'?, BBC News
Links and further information
Don’t forget to follow UoY sustainability on social media.
You can also check out UoY Sustainability on our wordpress blog, or click the links below to find out more!
- UoY Sustainability pages
- Our Sustainability Plan 2021-2030
- Staff can join the Green Impact slack channel: #green-impact.
- Green Impact toolkit (registration code: 40238)
- Green Impact google site
- SOS-UK webinar series