Green Gown Awards 2012: Leicester shortlisted in two categories

Leicester has received two nominations in this year’s Green Gown Awards, which “recognise the exceptional sustainability initiatives being undertaken by universities and colleges across the UK.”

Our Environment Team’s Student Volunteering Programme has been shortlisted in the ‘Student Initiatives and Campaigns’ category (sponsored by the Scottish Funding Council). And the Sustainable Futures module taught by our Centre for Interdisciplinary Science is up for Best Course (category sponsored by the Higher Education Academy).

Now in their eighth year, the Green Gown Awards are presented by the EAUC (Environmental Association for Universities and Colleges), “the environmental and sustainability champion within Further and Higher Education in the UK.”

The Environment Team Student Volunteers are an essential part of the University’s commitment to sustainability and have been instrumental in major projects including Big Green Week, the Big Tidy Up and the campus-wide waste audit, as well as small-scale projects with local community groups and school.

The Sustainable Futures module, taught as part of the i-Science degree, provides students with a broad understanding of environmental issues, not just from a scientific angle but also in terms of society, politics, education etc. Among other projects, students on the course get to:

• Explore some of the complexities involved in the attempt to reach international agreements on environmental issues such as climate change.
• Deliver presentations developed for the Earth Summit, taking the role of delegates from an identified interest group.
• Use the University as a microcosm of sustainability and critically review the University’s environmental management work.

Both nominations will now be resubmitted in greater detail for stage two of the awards. The winners will be announced in November.