Sustainability Services Update, July 2021

Sustainability Awards

The winners have been announced for this year’s Sustainability Awards! Each year we celebrate the sustainability achievements of students and staff at the University of Leeds with the Annual Sustainability Awards. This year we reached a record number of nominations, so we want to give a huge, heartfelt thank you to everyone who submitted and to those of you who were nominated.

Congratulations to all of our deserved winners, you can read about them all on the Sustainability website as well as the shortlisted nominations.

Positive Impact Partners Program (PIP)

The Covid-19 pandemic has disproportionately impacted the health, wellbeing, and prosperity of our local communities. We invited University, third sector and civic colleagues to join us in a Positive Impact Partners workshop, to explore the main challenges communities face post-Covid, discuss the existing examples of effective partnerships, and identify the ways in which we can work together to support communities in the future.

The workshop was well received with group discussions that followed these themes:

Better collaborative working
Addressing community needs and challenges post-covid
Addressing social and economic divides

The workshop was well attended, with excellent plans for future collaboration including the formation of new partnerships through PIP. If you’d like to find out more about PIP and how to get involved, please visit this page here.

ISCN Awards

At the International Sustainable Campus Network (ISCN) Awards 2021, the Urban Biodiversity Monitoring Programme, part of the Leeds Living Lab, received the Partnerships for Progress Award. The award recognises how the programme brings together an interdisciplinary group of staff and students from our University community to collaborate in addressing global issues at a local scale.
The ISCN is an association of more than 80 colleges and universities from over 30 countries, which aims to support the global higher education sector as a leader in sustainability.

Student Sustainability Research Conference 2021

The annual University of Leeds Student Sustainability Research Conference took place earlier this month and allows students at all levels and across all disciplines to showcase their sustainability-themed research, projects, performances and installations. It is a great way to share ideas and creates opportunities to develop innovative solutions to sustainability challenges.

The theme of this year’s conference was Leaving No One Behind, one of the guiding principles behind the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Four live sessions took place in addition to a selection of pre-recorded content.

New arrivals and a fond farewell

Last month we welcomed Nicole Walker to our team as a Sustainability Project Officer. Nicole obtained a Bachelor of Science (Hons.) in Biology from Queen’s University, and a master’s degree in Environmental Sciences with a specialisation in Conservation and Biodiversity from the University of Toronto. After this, Nicole worked at the Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks in Toronto where her work involved assessing applications for environmental approvals for projects across the province. She worked in this role for nearly three years until deciding to make the move to the UK. In her spare time, she enjoys hiking, scuba diving and travelling as much as possible.

We also welcome Lyndsay Dale to the Service as Project Assistant and Personal Assistant to Louise Ellis, the Director of Sustainability. Lyndsay obtained her degree in Popular Music at the Leeds Conservatoire focusing on song writing and journalism. After this, she worked at the National Institute of Health Research supporting the Clinical Research Network across Yorkshire and Humber. She worked within health research for three years before moving to the University of Leeds. Outside of work, she enjoys reading, going to the pub and playing music with her band.

Lastly, we wanted to say a huge congratulations to Kelly Forster, our Sustainability Projects Coordinator who will be leaving the University in June after five years of committed service, to move on to an exciting new role at the Leeds Art University. Thank you, Kelly for bringing creativity and dedication to your roles at the University in the Service, you will be greatly missed!