Category: Community (Page 1 of 10)

Listening at The Big One and reflections from a King’s student

This blog post was written by Wendy Whittall, studying the Climate Change – Environment, Science & Policy MSc at King’s.


Someone talking on a stageI was watching the Reverend Billy and the Stop Shopping Choir on the main stage. The Choir had not made the stage, maybe not even the UK, so we (a melange of protesters, environmentalists, protectors and activists at The Big One) watched hypnotised by the Revered Billy with his Elvis-style white shock of hair, dog collar and shiny, bright pink suit who had arrived from NY to give us an impassioned talk about the Earth which was interspersed with him singing enthusiastically…. Earth-a-lujah, Earth-a-lujah.

Earlier in the day, it was trying to rain when I had met up at the COVID memorial wall, the heart-covered wall on the Westminster side of the bridge, with members of thGroup picture of listening teame King’s Climate Action Network and South London Citizens to carry out a Listening Project on the first day, Friday 21st April, of The Big One, the four-day marathon XR event which had attracted over 200 organisations. The event was a change of tactics to be family-friendly, educational and fun with the hope of creating momentum to end all new government fossil-fuel licences.

 3 people holding up banners

I joined up with Paulina and Jone to chat with several people to find out their reasons for coming to The Big One. Our first conversation was with a worker who, with her large board, had taken the day off to protest against the government’s inability to push through the Buildings Bill which, if passed, would reduce dramatically the 50mt of carbon emission by the UK construction industry.

We then spoke to two lovely well-dressed ladies, one had graffitied the back of her expensive coat and re-Two people standing below a green umbrellaengineered a green umbrella for the occasion, who had never been to an XR event beforehand and were motivated to attend as they understood it would be peaceful. They had arrived to support XR’s initiative to keep a future for their grandchildren. We also spoke to a couple of new sustainable businesses and long-time activists from Brighton.

Family holding up bannersWhilst we were watching the XR parade which included lots of drummers and spooky-looking people dressed head-to-toe in lipstick red floaty dresses, we met a young family from London whose boys had made their own banners, one stating “Don’t Wreck our Future” and the other “Don’t Throw it Away”.

Big ben and parade of people wearing red costumesAfter we had all gathered for a debrief of the project and left to go our separate ways, I continued down the length of Milbank dotted with many pop-up marquees à la festival including activists from Climate Justice, Greenpeace and Doctors and Psychologists were represented plus different forms of art activities. I was interested in talking to the Climate Fresk promoters, a collaborative workshop teaching the science of climate change based on the IPCC reports motivating a wider understanding of the problem.

To my delight I met, at the Climate Fresk stand, some environmentalists who had arrived from several different countries in Europe, Sweden, Germany & Belgium to name a few, to attend all four days. I People holding up flagsspoke to a doctor from Germany who had arrived by coach with 50 other passionate environmentalists. He had in the past organised climate-related events and was at The Big One to understand the positives and negatives of the event to create a similar event in Germany. His motivation was the experience of heat exposure during the summer months, and how the media does not talk about the number of deaths in the elderly, the young and the vulnerable, over 8,000 in 2022. He said that Germany had already passed the 1.5C IPCC bar and that the summers are longer and hotter. He also spoke about adequate wind farm energy for the entire country but due to an archaic law, whereby, if there is surplus energy being produced the energy is reduced by ‘switching off’ the newest (renewable) energy, thereby leaving coal as the burning, polluting energy source. He also acknowledged that the Greens, in the coalition German government, had sold out politically.

And it was about then when the Reverend Billy entered on stage. It had stopped raining, the sun was out, and there was the heavy scent of patchouli and the faint whiff of weed in the air. After the final and rousing Earth-a-lujah, Earth-a-lujah, I wended my way back down Milbank to Westminster tube.Person holding up an earth craft

I hadn’t gone far when I met up with the Mothers’ Climate Action Network with one of the mums dressed in an eye-catching French blue sequinned trouser-suit together with a turquoise bobbed wig all framed by a massive globe that she wore like a giant circular wing.

Two people holding up plants and craftsJust a bit further on I met two lovely ladies carrying a gorgeous-smelling wreath made that morning in one of their workshops. Each flower and stick of herb that had been added to the wreath had a prayer attached and the following day, Earth Day, they were going to hold a service by the Thames and return the wreath to the Earth by floating it on the Thames and releasing all the prayers to the world.

Over the weekend, I attended a couple (6 hours worth) of Climate Fresk workshops in Canada Water where I met Ruth, who had been an XR Steward. I offered to return her aprons to The Big One on Sunday, and while doing so, I was persuaded to stay for a 10-minute Climate Justice comedy sessionWall painting by Kate Smurthwaite (www.linktr.ee/katesmurthwaite). Big shout out.

The Big One was an interesting and wonderful event that brought people together, those that have voiced on our behalf for years and those who would not have normally attended an event, speaking for our future. There were the loud and passionate Earth-a-lujahs to the quiet and spiritual wreath laying of our prayers. All of us whether loud, angry, hopeful, funny, spiritual or sad were all there for the same aim. It was a mess of emotions in a world of business as usual on a warming planet.


This listening exercise was carried out as part of a climate listening campaign being carried out by King’s Climate Action Network in collaboration with South London CitizensThe campaign brings together community members through a community organising approach and invites them to talk about issues related to climate change they care about and reflect on why they are important to them. By listening to and connecting with people, the campaign aims to build our collective power and create a local climate movement that puts our communities’ concerns first.

Join the final week of King’s Climate & Sustainability Month

King’s Climate & Sustainability Month offers you an opportunity to learn more about sustainability topics, collaborate and connect with others from across King’s, and take action on the climate crisis. Join the final week for a tree planting afternoon, a sustainability careers night, a climate action Q&A, a community mobilisation workshop, and more. Don’t forget to follow us on Instagram and Twitter for updates.

Check out the events taking place this week:

Monday 27th 12-13 (Strand) Climate Change: What can we do? Join this student-activist-academic-led panel as part of the Associateship of King’s College (AKC).

 

15.30-16.30 (Waterloo) Stitch and Pitch: Volunteering Share your ideas, meet new people and learn about volunteering while honing your creative skills.

 

Various King’s Entrepreneurship Week – Day 1 Join an entrepreneurship hackathon, a workshop on how to build diverse teams, and a discussion about whether cities can be sustainable.

 

Tuesday 28th 12-13 (Online) Q&A with the Collective for Climate Action Find out more about this network of climate networks including 300 government organisations.

 

Various King’s Entrepreneurship Week – Day 2 Learn about how to spark disruptive ideas and gain insight into fast-paced innovation in health.

 

Wednesday 1st 15-16 (Online) Ethical and Fairtrade consumption What does Fairtrade mean? What are its limitations? How accessible are ethical choices?

 

17.30-20.30 (Guy’s) Stolen Climate: Global Perspectives of Fire on Earth Explore how we understand wildfires from their interaction with the Earth’s atmosphere to their relationship with colonialism.

 

Various King’s Entrepreneurship Week – Day 3 Find out how to develop entrepreneurial ideas using feedback and share yours in a speed mentoring session.

 

Thursday 2nd 12-13.30 (Online) Community organising & change-making

 

Join this workshop to hear about the power of community organising to change our societies.

 

16-18 (Strand) Engineering Microbial Biotech for Environmental Sustainability Learn about the role of the Sustainable Development Goals in microbial biotech.

 

18.30-20 (Residence) GradPlus: Climate & Sustainability careers Join the GradPlus team to discover careers related to climate & sustainability.

 

Various King’s Entrepreneurship Week – Day 4 Hear about the career journeys of three successful women and uncover disability bias in entrepreneurship.

 


Friday 3rd
12-14 (Honour Oak Park) Tree planting afternoon  Enjoy being outdoors and meet new people while helping us plant over 200 trees.

 

Various King’s Entrepreneurship Week – Day 5 Learn how to create an entrepreneurial CV and enjoy the week’s closing networking party.
All week Fairtrade Fortnight (27th of February – 12th of March) Choosing Fairtrade supports producers in protecting the future of some of our most-loved food and the planet.

 

Join the Big Garden Birdwatch (27th of January)

The 2023 Big Campus Birdwatch takes place on Friday 27th January, and we’re encouraging staff and students to take part.

The RSPB (Royal Society for the Protection of Birds) Big Garden Birdwatch takes place over the weekend of 27th – 29th January 2023. This annual survey is not only a great opportunity to learn more about our back garden wildlife, but also makes an important contribution to monitoring biodiversity across the country. Last year over a million people took part in the event!

The University encourages staff and students alike to take part in the Big Garden Birdwatch and we also organise our own Big Campus Birdwatch, where we ask staff and students to help us better understand the bird life across different areas of campus.

This year, the Big Campus Birdwatch will take place on Friday 27th January, and can be carried out in your own time, either individually or in small groups with your friends or colleagues.

How can I take part?

To take part in the Big Campus Birdwatch, simply register using this link and choose a favourite spot on campus at any time on Friday 27th January and record what birds you see.

Showcase your work at the London Student Sustainability Conference 2023

Calling all students at King’s College London! 

Join this unique opportunity to showcase your sustainability work in front of an inter-university audience and to network with other like-minded students.  

Group picture from LSSC 2022 showing people holding up SDG signs.

Group picture taken at LSSC 2022.

The London Student Sustainability Conference (LSSC) is back again in February 2023 for its fifth edition. This conference is a platform for any students at a London University to showcase their work related to the Sustainable Development Goals. 

The event welcomes students, staff, professionals, and members of the public to listen and engage with student research and projects in the field of sustainability. During the event, students exhibit their research and projects through presentations, posters and workshops, followed by an early evening networking reception. 

This year’s Conference is a collaboration between King’s and 9 other London universities: City, GCU, Imperial, Kingston, LSE, South Bank, UCL, Greenwich, and Westminster. 

This is a great opportunity to share your work with a diverse audience, practice presentation skills and network with students, staff and professionals interested in sustainability from universities across London and beyond! 

Find out how to apply here. Deadline: 4th of December. 

Registrations for tickets to attend will open in January 2023. Stay tuned by subscribing to the King’s Sustainability newsletter and following King’s Sustainability on Instagram. 

Read about LSSC 2022.  

Weathervane: We Not I 

Tuesday 15th November, 17:00-19:30, Strand Campus Great Hall

Person holding up a poster saying "13% of homes in fuel poverty" in a museumOn Tuesday 15th November King’s Culture Climate Collective is presenting Weathervane: We Not I, a joyful evening of collective artmaking and a student-led call to action from the Great Hall on Strand Campus.

As COP27 approaches and millions of young people once again hold their breath for meaningful political action, how do we create space for King’s students to share their climate hopes and fears, their dreams for a just and sustainable future?

Weathervane answers that call, featuring a range of empowering activities including:

  • The creation of We Are A Sea, a live unfolding mass artwork led by artist Beccy McCray exploring our relationship to water through the mixing of plant dyes
  • A talk from youth social justice organiser Simmone Ahiaku about how to turn climate anxiety into hope, resistance, and change
  • A showcase of specially created climate justice posters created by King’s students
  • The creation of the Climate Action Network Collective Manifesto, The Wall of Hope, a sustainable crochet masterclass and more!

Refreshments will be provided. Open to all students and stuff, however space is limited. RSVP via Eventbrite.

Take part in the climate listening campaign in the community

Passionate about taking climate action, challenging injustice and building stronger communities? Then this might be an exciting opportunity for you!  

Over the next few months, the King’s Climate Action Network (CAN) will be running a listening campaign in King’s local boroughs. The CAN is now recruiting leads and 121 volunteers to support the roll-out of the listening campaign. 

The leads will form the passionate core team shaping this campaign. As a lead, you will receive full-day community organising training by Citizens UK to empower you to coordinate the project and lead a group of volunteers to conduct 121 conversations.  

As a 121 volunteer, you will conduct the listening to hear first-hand about the climate and sustainability challenges our local communities face and identify how King’s can support them in taking action. 

You will be working together with like-minded people to make real change while developing key skills including leadership, listening, organisation, and teamwork. 

Apply here: https://forms.office.com/r/wcAiRsyBVQ 

Student Auditors for Sustainability Champions

Last week, students from a variety of degree backgrounds volunteered as Student Sustainability Auditors. They received IEMA approved training on sustainability auditing, which they then used to audit teams of Sustainability Champions at King’s across two days. Find out more about the Sustainability Champions programme here.

We asked the students how they found the experience:

May be an image of 7 people, people standing and indoor

 

“Training was very helpful and well presented. Using this method to evaluate organizations in sustainability efforts will be beneficial in future interactions personally and professionally. A very insightful experience.”

“I have enjoyed this opportunity to learn more about what different departments are doing at King’s and how they are able to improve this. It was also good to be able to meet fellow students with a similar interest in the topic.”

“I really enjoyed the training and met interesting people. It was really exciting to look into all the meaningful work the sustainability team and the sustainability champions are doing.”

King’s is re-certified with the international standard ISO14001 for our environmental management system

This update is brought to you by Nicola Hogan, King’s Sustainability Manager for Operations.


King’s was recently re-certified with the international standard ISO14001 for our environmental management system.

For those of you not familiar with the international standard, it provides a framework that the King’s Estates and Facilities team can follow for guidance on best environmental practice, and subsequently submit evidence of their environmental performance. The system and its evidence are then audited by an external auditor for certification to the standard.

The recertification was awarded by NQA after one of their auditors carried out a 6-day external audit of 4 of our sites (Bush House, Guy’s Campus, Honor Oak Park and Great Dover Street Apartments). He also audited our various EMS documents, for further evidence of adherence to the ISO:140001 standard.

The auditor, who has audited King’s before and knows the campus quite well, was particularly impressed with the extent to which we communicate with staff and students via social media and newsletter. Being re-certified with this standard is important to King’s as it confirms our operations have considered their impact on the environment, minimised it where practicable and that we remain compliant with relevant legislation year on year.

An example of reduced impact on the environment includes evidencing that our recycling rates have improved and our bins are not contaminated, that our buildings source their energy from solar panels, that several of our lightings are LED and that lights and electrical equipment are not left on unnecessarily. The auditor also interviewed various staff at each site and commented on how knowledgeable everyone was about how their sites operated.

Aside from physical evidence, the auditor also needed to see that we were keeping important and relevant documentation up to date, that we were making changes in line with changes in legislation and that external global activities such as climate change, COP26, COVID and fuel supply shortages had been considered. Examples of such documents are our list of objectives and targets, our compliance register, our aspects and interested parties, and an up-to-date Environmental and Sustainable Policy that refers to the EMS.

The Sustainability Team are delighted at being re-certified but agree that we should not rest on our laurels. While our overall score was very good, the auditor identified several areas that he considered ‘opportunities for improvement’. The wider estates and facilities teams will be working hard to make those improvements and to identify where we can make further changes that will reduce our carbon footprint further. We will be audited again in March 2023, and have already started preparing for another successful audit. 

So if you are wondering what you can do to contribute to a smaller carbon footprint, feel free to send suggestions to Sustainability@kcl.ac.uk. Alternatively, if you see resources being wasted across the estate, e-mail ask@kcl.ac.uk.

New student-led initiative: Freecycle

King’s Residences and King’s Sustainability are trialling a new initiative this year called Freecycle. Items such as bedding and cookware will be donated by current residences and reused by students moving in after summer. The goal is to minimise waste while providing students with essentials without a price tag. Tasks will include sorting out and distributing items. Volunteers will be able to call dibs on certain items and there might be free food involved. If interested, please fill out this form to receive more information.

This is initiative has been led by Kindness Ezekwe who is a BSc Accounting and Finance student at King’s Business School and part of the Students & Education subgroup of King’s Climate Action Network.

Dive into King’s Spotlight on Sustainability podcast

The new series of the Spotlight on Sustainability podcast has landed! In this series, Emily and Abigail will be exploring “Building sustainable communities”. 

Episode 1: How can universities be more inclusive to migrants? With Ria Patel 

In this episode, Ria Patel, founder of the KCL Undoing Borders campaign, Co-Chair of LGBTIQA+ Greens and External Relations Officer for Greens of Colour, talks about the KCL Undoing Borders campaign. This campaign aims to tackle the hostile environment against migrants at universities.  

Episode 2: Why does Equality, Diversity and Inclusion matter? With Sarah Guerra 

In this episode we are very lucky to be joined by Sarah Guerra, Director of Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) at King’s to explore what EDI is, why it matters and how you can help make your community accessible for all.

You can access the podcast on Spotify here. We would love to hear your thoughts on this episode; get in touch via the email sustainability@kcl.ac.uk. 

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