Dr Neil Smith, Environment Manager receiving the Green Gown award for Energy and Efficiency for the CHP and district heating system from Alan Knight at the EAUC 2007 conference.
Dr Neil Smith, Environment Manager receiving the Green Gown award for Energy and Efficiency for the CHP and district heating system from Alan Knight at the EAUC 2007 conference.
University of Southampton

University of Southampton

The University of Southampton is committed to reducing its impact on the environment, as demonstrated by being the only institution to win or be commended in every year of the Green Gown awards.

Strategic Direction

The University is putting in place the resources and policy framework to drive its environmental improvement programme. The main elements are:

Commitment

Senior management is engaged in supporting staff and students to facilitate change. For example:

  • The Vice-Chancellor, Professor Bill Wakeham, signed up to the Carbon Trust’s Carbon Management Programme to reduce energy consumption and cut costs.

  • The Board of the National Oceanographic Centre, Southampton approved the implementation of an environmental management system certified to the ISO14001 standard.

Estate management

The Estate Strategy published in 2006 stated that buildings and infrastructure will be developed with minimal environmental impacts and will be sustainably designed, procured and operated. We are embarking on a major capital programme over the next five years and the University’s Sustainable Buildings Policy, with the requirement to build to BREEAM Excellent or Very Good, is providing a focus for these developments. The Student Services Building completed in 2005 was highly commended in the Green Gown awards.

Change management

Staff and students are being engaged, involved and informed in a variety of ways to influence a change in their behaviour to reduce their impact on the environment. For example:

  • We’ve run five workshops for key Purchasing staff to inform them of how their buying decisions can deliver the principles of sustainable procurement. This is part of a sustainable procurement project and is in partnership with the EAUC.

  • The Student Union ran their second Environmental Awareness Week, with different environmental theme each day followed by the fifth Environmental Rock event at a local pub on Saturday 28th May.

  • A network of Environmental Champions is being set up to take forward environmental improvements in their schools/departments. A champions pack has been produced to help them in their role.

This is a very exciting time for the University as it takes steps to be a more environmentally responsible organisation.

Main Contact Name: Dr Neil Smith, Environment Manager
Main Contact Email & Telephone: nfs@soton.ac.uk and 023 8059 6679
Further information/website: www.southampton.ac.uk/sustainability
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