Back in March this year we asked you to provide your feedback about the green campaigns and initiatives we’ve been running in order to ensure we’re doing all we can to increase our sustainability here at your Guild.
You provided some great insights which have shown us just what we’re doing well and also what you’d like us to do differently moving forward. Keep on reading to see some of the findings:
The Guild and sustainability
Firstly, around half of the students surveyed agree that both your Guild and the University act to limit the negative impacts on the environment and our society, with a third of students seeming a little unsure when thinking about the Guild.
This is something that we’ll be working to improve, so we’ll be looking to incorporate additional updates on just what we’re doing to be more sustainable, via our Green Impact page. We’re also keen for you to get in touch if you have any thoughts for what else we can do for the environment.
How well you knew about our activities
Speaking of our sustainability initiatives, each year we run a number of activities to promote sustainability at both your Guild and in the local community. We wanted to gauge the performance of these initiatives and when asked 40% of you told us that you’d heard of our Go Green Week celebration. Many of you were also aware of our Junkbusters and Community Pantry initiatives.
However, you did let us know that you wanted to see more news around Fossil Free Fuels and Environmental Society updates. We’ll be taking all of this feedback on-board going forward to address how we can communicate our activities and sustainability news.
Things you’d like us to work on
The student voice is at the heart of everything we do so we asked what sustainability ideas you’d like us to work on. The top three results were:
- 75% of you wanted us to increase the percentage of renewable energy in our energy mix
- You wanted us to introduce a reward-based recycling scheme
- You wanted to see more indoor recycling bins in accommodation and student housing
It’s so useful to see the actions that you want us to prioritise and these issues will form a part of our on-going work.
What you wanted to know and see
We asked you to highlight information you wanted to know and also provide suggestions on what further actions you’d like to see us and the University take to improve our performance on sustainable development. Here are some of the things you told us:
- You were very interested and wanted to know more about how ethically the University’s and your Guild’s funds are invested.
- You suggested:
- Making more food waste recycling options available
- Having more vegan and vegetarian options on campus
- Less plastic on campus (water fountains, no straws, single use bottles)
- Less paper
- Switching off lights
All in all, our research was very illuminating and has provided us with lots of useful information to drive future sustainability efforts. Thanks to everyone who took part.
Keep checking our Green Impact page for all the latest news when it comes to sustainability at your Guild and on campus.