Sustainability Opportunities for Staff
Useful sustainability information, training and workshops, have your questions answered, even become a Sustainability Champion!
Understanding and addressing the climate crisis is not just for environment students and staff. Every part of society needs to be aware of, understand and mitigate the effects of climate change.
Carbon literacy training is an engaging, interactive and thought-provoking way to learn. You will equip yourself with the climate knowledge and understanding you need to make a positive change in your own life and to positively influence those around you.
There is about an hour's preparatory reading prior to a one-day interactive workshop, delivered by the University’s Sustainability team. Please read the FAQ below for further information.
We can also offer a 1-hour introductory 'taster session' to staff or students who would like to get a better understanding of what carbon literacy means, before perhaps enrolling in the workshop.
Courses run on an ad hoc basis and advertised by the Careers and Employability Service and on the Sustainability Instagram page. We can also provide either session for department or groups upon request. Please contact the team sustainability@kent.ac.uk to discuss your requirements
A 'Climate Fresk' is an engaging, interactive workshop which helps participants build their understanding of the causes and effects of climate change. These 3-hour workshops are based around sets of 'climate cards' which the participants interconnect to create a fresco, (hence "Fresk").
Working in small teams, you'll be supported throughout by people who'll have the answers to questions you raise. The Climate Fresk methodology does NOT involve experts presenting information to the group. Instead it asks participants to learn from the cards and take an active role in the building-up of the Fresk, becoming participative learners.
In summary, in a highly interactive and enjoyable session, you will use the cards to improve your understanding of climate change, including its causes and consequences. You'll also improve valuable skills:
If you, or your team, are interested in participating in a workshop, please email sustainability for assistance. We look forward to hearing from you!
At the University of Kent, our Sustainability Champions assist our delivery of sustainability actions, driving impactful improvements in Schools, Departments and teams. The network has delivered thousands of actions and ideas to improve sustainability at Kent.
Recruitment for new Champions is always open, so if you would like to know more about the role and what it entails, please take a look at the role description and sign-up form in the menu on the right. You can also contact the Sustainability Team to chat about the role in more detail.
What a Sustainability Champion does:
1. Distributes key sustainability resources and information from the sustainability team to their workplace.
2. Coordinates the School or Department’s actions, embedding the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) into its activities.
3. Promotes sustainability to colleagues and, where applicable, students.
4. Engages with the Sustainability Champions Network on Microsoft Teams.
5. Reports progress from their School or Department by writing case studies, blogs and taking pictures of activities.
6. Attends workshops and celebration events.
The best place to find out sustainability at the University of Kent is from our sustainability Instagram page @unikent.sustainability
Follow this link to find out how the University reduces its impact through reducing consumption, maximising re-use opportunities, promoting recycling and adopting 'circular economy' principles.
Our main waste contractor is Biffa, who take our general waste and mixed recycling. There is more information on what happens to this waste available on Biffa's website.
An organisation's 'carbon footprint' comprises the measurement of three categories of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions; (Scopes 1, 2 and 3). We have measured our total carbon footprint across our estate. You can find a full breakdown of these emissions here (pdf).
We have reduced our direct (Scopes 1 and 2) carbon emissions by 17% since we set our Net Zero by 2040 target back in 2021 and overall our emissions are now roughly half what they were in 2008. This has been achieved through a number of measures including:
The University has adopted 6 strategic priorities which are structured around the SDGs:
#4 Quality Education; #11 Sustainable Cities and Communities; #12 Responsible Consumption and Production; #13 Climate Action; #15 Life on Land and #17 Partnership for the Goals.
Read this pdf for in-depth information about how we will meet these 6 strategic priorities.
Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) is about ensuring that our graduates, regardless of their field of study, are equipped with the necessary skills and attributes to face global sustainability challenges. You can find out more about sustainability embedded in our formal and informal curriculum on this page.
We set Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-Bound (SMART) targets against all of our significant operational areas. These are reported upon annually, as part of the Environmental Management System (EMS) review process. More information about these targets and the action plans for achieving them can be found by reading the relevant operational strategies.
Very. The University’s Sustainable Food Steering Group worked hard to implement the first year of our ambitious 2-year 'Sustainable Food Action' plan. The plan brings together our work as a Right to Food University (in conjunction with the Food Foundation), our catering strategy and our progress towards embedding sustainability into every part of catering from procurement to how we operate our kitchens.
Overall, we have achieved 20 out of the 36 objectives in the plan and have partially achieved a further 8. We're now working towards the remaining 8 objectives.
Highlights have included the ongoing success of the cost-of-living meal and progress in increasing the number, variety and quality of plant-based meals on offer. We now have a vegan-only pop-up food outlet, 'Silence of The Yams'!
We're regenerating the ecology of our campuses to promote biodiversity whilst still using of our natural spaces for education, engagement and wellbeing activities. You can discover more by following this link.