Green Gown Awards 2014 Ceremony

The Green Gown Awards, sponsored by the CISCO and BT educational partnership, Ceremony will take place on Monday 3 November 2014 at the stunning Whitworth Hall, The University of Manchester.

The Green Gown Awards black-tie ceremony brings together the leaders, drivers and thinkers of sustainability initiatives within the tertiary education sector. Show your support for and get inspiration from the finalists by being a part of the most prestigious recognition of best practice within the education sector.

Enjoy the evening with your peers and fellow finalists and be present when all the winners and highly commended entries are announced. It could be you and your chance to shine! 

We are now fully booked for the Awards Ceremony.

Announcing our host for the evening…
Simon Reeve, author and TV presenter and one of the world’s most adventurous travellers

We are delighted to announce that Simon Reeve will be our host for the evening. Simon will be enthralling our sell-out evening of guests.

Simon is an ambassador for the nature conservation organisation WWF, and has been awarded a One World Broadcasting Trust award for an “outstanding contribution to greater world understanding”, and the prestigious 2012 Ness Award by the Royal Geographical Society.

As the presenter of multiple BBC television series including Sacred Rivers (currently on BBC 2), Indian Ocean, Australia, Tropic of Cancer, Equator, and Tropic of Capricorn, he has travelled extensively in more than 110 countries, across jungles, deserts, mountains and oceans, and to some of the most beautiful, dangerous and remote regions of the world.

Simon’s unique brand of documentary-making, combining travel and adventure with current affairs, history, wildlife, culture and conservation, has seen him cover a huge variety of stories, often in developing, poverty-stricken and war-torn countries.

His TV adventures have been broadcast in dozens of countries, enthralling millions.

An EAUC Member sector venue once again is to host the Awards

Awards Ceremony Venue - The University of Manchester

To celebrate the exceptional sustainability initiatives being undertaken by universities and colleges across the UK, we are delighted to announce that we will be holding the Awards Ceremony in the stunning Whitworth Hall, located at the heart of The University of Manchester’s Oxford Road campus. It is situated within the neo-Gothic Whitworth Building, regarded as the most prestigious of University buildings, where University graduation ceremonies and all high profile dinners and events are hosted – it’s a real Manchester treasure.

Whitworth Hall is a listed building but despite its age and grandeur, the University has worked hard to bring it in line with the University’s sustainability policy and is credited as being one of the first universities to install fully recyclable LED lighting into a listed building back in 2009. This has reduced the lighting bill for the building by almost 50%.

"Social responsibility and sustainability are part of only three core goals we have at Manchester, sitting equally alongside our commitment to world-class research and outstanding learning. Building on the recognition we have received through the EAUC Green Gown awards in recent years, we are delighted to be hosting colleagues from the tertiary education sector for this prominent annual event in the HE/FE calendar."
Julian Skyrme • Director of Social Responsibility •  The University of Manchester

Click here for a virtual tour of Whitworth Hall

Our sustainability ethos

• Working with our partners The Soil Association and The University of Manchester, we are proud to once again announce that we have been accredited the prestigious GOLD “Food for Life” catering mark for guaranteeing an Awards’ dinner menu that includes fresh, local, seasonal produce from the UK and incorporating 15% of organic ingredients 
• We encourage all delegates to take public transport to/from the venue wherever possible. If delegates who must travel by car we recommend to use the EAUC Car Share scheme. Details can be found at www.eauccarshare.org.uk.
• We only print the Finalists’ Brochure with Guest Directory and the menu – with recognised environmentally-friendly printing techniques and 100% recycled paper. All other elements are communicated electronically
• We have worked with our suppliers to re-use and recycle materials where possible
• We have worked with the venue to use local suppliers.

Sustainability at The University of Manchester

The University of Manchester’s sustainability responsibilities is key to its thinking and it is continuously improving its efforts to reduce its carbon footprint by supporting local, independent businesses, using fresh, seasonal and ethically produced ingredients and also more sustainable products (from cleaning products to compostable food containers) and recycling wherever possible.

Travel to the University is supported by a hybrid-electric shuttle bus service that runs from Piccadilly train station to the University campuses.

The University’s Environmental Sustainability Plan sets out how it will maximise its positive environmental impacts whilst at the same time reducing the negative ones. Its vision is to transform The University of Manchester into a low carbon institution, whilst educating its students and delivering leading research, to address the global challenge of sustainability.

• Click here to find out more about sustainability at The University of Manchester
• Click here to view The University of Manchester's Catering Sustainability Policy

The University of Manchester is no stranger to the Green Gown Awards, having achieved an accolade of wins over the past years. In 2013 The University won the Green Gown Award for Social Responsibility – Winner (School Governors Scheme) which was also the International Winner. Click here to watch the webinar about their winning entry. Their other winning entries include:

2012 – Courses – Winner - View the Video and Case Study
2012 – Social Responsibility - Finalist
2012 - Students Initiatives and Campaigns – Finalist - View the Case Study
2010 – Carbon – Finalist
2010 – Courses – Highly Commended - View the Winners Brochure
2009 – Sustainable Construction – Finalist
2008 – Courses – Highly Commended - View the Winners Brochure
2008 – Residences - Winner - View the Winners Brochure

Timings for the evening

Registration and drinks reception will take place in the Library from 6.30pm with the Dinner and the Awards presentation taking place in Whitworth Hall ending at 11.00pm. Entertainment until 1.00am. This event is black tie.

How to get there

Whitworth Hall, The University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester M13 9PL. Tel. 0161 275 2155
Click here for directions
Click here for an interactive map (Whitworth Hall is number 50 on the map) 

As is the ethos of the Green Gown Awards, we do encourage all guests to take public transport wherever possible.

Arriving by train

The main train station is Piccadilly Station. Click here to plan your travel

Piccadilly Rail Station to Oxford Road
The Oxford Road link bus (number 147) runs from Piccadilly Rail Station across the campus stopping at 14 locations and finishing at Grafton Street. This service runs on weekdays between 7.15am and 6.45pm, at ten-minute intervals, and can be caught from the Fairfield Street entrance to Piccadilly Station.

A taxi from Piccadilly Station to the Oxford Road area of the campus will cost you about £5.

Accommodation options

Whitworth Hall post code is: M13 9PL

Closest hotel options to Whitworth Hall (15 – 20 minutes’ walk away and on a bus route) are:

• Holiday Inn Express (Oxford Road) guide price of £83.00 (room only)
• IBIS Charles St/Princess St guide price of £49.50-£62.00 (room only)
• Macdonald Hotel and Spa is a four star hotel on London Road (20 minute walk) offering bed and breakfast at £89 (single occupancy, supplement of £10 for double occupancy). Reservations can be made by calling 0161 306 8801 and quoting Green Gown Awards. You will need to provide credit card details to guarantee your reservation.  These rates are valid until 3 October.

Other options are:

• Chancellors Hotel – owned by The University of Manchester – this is a 15/20 minute taxi ride away from Whitworth Hall. Prices vary depending on room types.
• Manchester Tourist Board – List of hotels

To book please visit the webpages. It may be worth looking at accommodation search engines to get the best possible rates.

Discovering Manchester

Click here for more information on Manchester and what’s on.

For any other information, contact the Green Gown Awards Team greengown@eauc.org.uk or 01242 714321