The College Green

Welcome to 'The College Green', Birkbeck's Forum for Energy and Sustainability Issues; a green space on the College Website that will explain the measures Birkbeck takes to build sustainability into its operations and a place where staff and students can find out how their ideas and actions could help minimise the impact of our business and even our personal activities on the environment.

The Environmental Management Group will report on College policies and strategies that it is developing and managing, as well as general events to raise environmental awareness among staff and students.

External recognition

Birkbeck is working towards getting its Environmental Management System to reach the standard of ISO 14001. This standard is reached through a 5-stage process and is audited externally. The objectives are to show to students, staff and external stakeholders that Birkbeck is in control organizational processes that effect the environment, and that we comply with environmental regulations.

Birkbeck is now working towards this as part of the Greenthing campaign.

The Greenthing is a shared initiative across the Bloomsbury Colleges (Birkbeck, The Institute of Education, The London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, The School of Oriental and African Studies, The School of Pharmacy).

This includes monitoring our impact on the environment, implementing technical solutions to improve environmental performance and encouraging more sustainable behaviours in all staff and students.

This includes reducing the use of energy and water, minimising waste by thinking about what we buy and reusing things where we can, and making sustainable choices for travel such as cycling and public transport. There are further resources available on the Greenthing campaign website.

Click to go to the Greenthing campaign website and find out more.

Birkbeck's work towards creating a greener and more sustainable environment was featured as a case study by Universities UK in its report, Greening Spires - Universities and the green agenda. UUK invited universities to submit case studies concerned with their institutions' research into climate change. In addition the report also includes case studies demonstrating the practical steps universities are taking, as employers and as places where people live and work. Birkbeck's green initiatives are featured on page 28 of the report..

Energy Manager

Welcome to Stephen McKinnell who has been appointed as Energy Manager for the Combined Heat and Power (CHP) Consortium which includes Birkbeck, Institute of Education and SOAS. Stephen's primary role is to manage the CHP contract but he will also work with consortium members on energy reduction.

Cycle to Work

Birkbeck has set up a cycle to work scheme that offers savings on the cost of a bicycle from certain suppliers. The scheme is aimed at getting people to use a more environmentally friendly form of transport. See full details here : Cycle to Work Scheme