Page 5 of 40

Weathervane: We Not I

November 7, 2022 / Jone De Roode Jauregi

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

On Tuesday 15^th 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.

We want to hear from you! Have your chance to win £500 cash

October 26, 2022 / Jone De Roode Jauregi

All students at King’s College London can be in with a chance of winning £500 by completing an online confidential survey about your time at university or college and the skills you develop for getting a job.

The short survey, which is being run in conjunction with SOS-UK, will take about 15 minutes to complete. The closing date is 13th November 2022 and students will be entered into a draw to win £500 or one of 10 £50 runner-up prizes.

To take part in the survey log on to https://online.snapsurveys.com/UniSkillsSurvey

Experience participating in a climate migration programme

October 21, 2022 / Jone De Roode Jauregi

This blog post was written by Leander Bischof, International Development student at King’s College London.

In this blog post, I am describing my experience with the Erasmus+ programme on climate migration and unaccompanied minors in Sevilla. The programme was delivered by the local partner organization INCOMA (International Consulting And Mobility Agency Sociedad De Responsabilidad Limitada).

I had a fantastic experience with the hosting organization and the facilities they used. In general, this trip was well organized from the start to the end. I first noticed this programme through an advertisement by King’s College London. Throughout the application process and afterwards, during the introduction and preparations for the training, the staff was very helpful and professional. The pick-up at the airport went smoothly and all other transportation was delivered reliably. Throughout the training, INCOMA staff members were always available to support us. The hotel accommodating us was of very high quality, which made this a very pleasant experience. Most importantly, the training was fully funded, flights, transportation, hotel, and food expenses were fully covered.

Additionally, the participants were well chosen, all were from extremely interesting backgrounds. One of my highlights during the training programme were the presentations of other training participants about their experience with climate migration since the chance to listen and have a talk with such people is usually very rare. It was particularly inspiring to listen to the participants from Laamiga, a London-based organization that supports and empowers migrant women in the UK. I am also thankful that the programme allowed me to make friends with such inspiring people and I hope to stay in contact with them. The training usually finished in the early afternoon and thus, we were given enough time to socialize and explore the city. I am sure there is excellent travel advice on the internet, so I will not go too much into detail about the location. However, I really recommend visiting the Plaza de Espana and the Alcazar, both very beautiful places. Luckily, we were provided with 25€ per day, which allowed us to visit these tourist attractions and try excellent Spanish food.

The programme itself consisted of 6 days of training. On the first day, we mostly received introductions into the training programme and the overall issue of climate migration. We talked about expectations we had for the programme and our reasons to join. The first day did not contain much training but was rather used to allow us time to familiarize ourselves with the other participants and the city of Sevilla.

On the second day we mainly focused on mental health and its importance for both migrants and people working with migrants. We learned how crucial a good mental health condition is to be able to support migrants in their struggles. The training provided many useful information on how to improve the mental wellbeing of yourself and others. Later, we listened to the presentations of other participants. The first presentation was by two social workers from Italy, the second was about volunteering experience in France and the third presentation was about immigration in the UK. My highlight of the day was surely the third presentation by one of the Laamiga members about their work and issues they and other organizations face due to UK politics.

The third day of training was about the inclusion of migrants into educational and vocational pathways. The presentations of that day focused on migration from Bangladesh and on national identities. An important learning outcome was that the domestic population often reacts very repellent and that much work needs to be done to deal with aggressions, fears, and stereotypes in the local population.

Day four included more information on mental health issues of refugees and how to help in overcoming traumas. We also heard a very impressive presentation from a Turkish reporter about illegal pushbacks by the Greek coastguard in the Mediterranean Sea. Her presentation included one of her documentaries, showing refugees on completely overcrowded rubber boats who where troubled by a large boat of the Greek coastguard. It showed the aggressive and endangering behaviour of the European Union to prevent refugees from entering their waters, which has led to so many tragedies in the Mediterranean Sea. In the afternoon, we were invited for an Erasmus+ evaluation session on the training programme.

The next day was my favourite day of the week. Since we could not visit a refugee centre in Sevilla due to Covid-19 outbreaks, we had the head of the refugee reception centres in Sevilla come to us. His presentation had a strong focus on the reception system in Spain and on the issue of climate migration. Afterwards, we listened to the presentation of a cultural mediator who works with unaccompanied minors in Italy. Hearing his presentation was very captivating and inspiring. The presenter himself came as an unaccompanied minor from Gambia to Italy, taking the backbreaking route to Europe which so many African migrants have taken, and which has costs so many lives. Through the deadly Sahara Desert to Libya, where kidnappers and modern slave traders are preying on migrants, to the Mediterranean Sea where people spend many days on overcrowded rubber boat and finally to Italy. It was very humbling to hear from such a first-hand experience about these hardships.

The programme of the final day consisted of a visit to the Bioalverde farm, an inclusion project for climate migrants in Sevilla. On this organic farm, migrants who were unable to find a job are given the chance to earn a living. Sustainability in every sense was the main maxim of the farm, greatly supported by the local population. This last day was a fantastic ending for this trip.

On the next day, early in the morning we were brought back to the airport and flew back to London. In total, I can say the training programme was an amazing experience, and I am highly recommending this to all interested students and staff members at my university.

Find out more about Kairos: http://kairoseurope.co.uk/

Find out more about the training opportunities: https://migrationresearchgroup.wordpress.com/

Join the King’s Climate Action Network Re-Launch (18th of October)

October 17, 2022 / Jone De Roode Jauregi

How can King’s take a leadership role in addressing the climate crisis? Join our King’s Climate Action Network (CAN) re-launch event to find out what the CAN is, what our plans are for this year, start discussing actions, and meet each other. This year, there will be paid and volunteering opportunities, and a range of trainings and workshops.

All King’s staff, students, and alumni are welcome to attend the re-launch event on the 18^th of October (4.30-6.30pm) in JCMB G. 16. Refreshments and snacks will be provided! Sign up to the CAN here, or email us if you have any questions.

The King’s CAN is an open, interdisciplinary forum which aims to bring together people from the King’s community who are passionate about sustainability and climate.

Throughout the next year, the CAN will implement actions from the co-created Sustainability & Climate Action Plan through dedicated Take Action teams. These teams will be led by trained and paid student project managers (~8 hours per month) and will cover topics from education to food.

The network is open to anyone at King’s – students, staff, alumni – as well as our key external partners. No prior knowledge is required. Climate action is an area the King’s community is increasingly passionate and concerned about, and we want to make sure that anyone who wants to contribute gets that chance. The next few years will be critical for climate action, and we have lots to do at King’s if we want to become net zero and ultimately absolute zero!

Join King’s climate action movement now.

Student Review of Enrolling on and Co-Creating King’s Sustainability and Climate Change #TakeAction Module

September 30, 2022 / Jone De Roode Jauregi

This guest blog post was written by student and KEATS TakeAction team member Oliver Yu Hurst.

Who am I?

Hello! My name is Oliver Yu Hurst and I’m studying a part-time MSc in Climate Change: Environment, Science & Policy in the Department of Geography at King’s College London. I graduated from Queen Mary University of London in 2021 with a BSc in Geography with Business Management. I aspire to gain a career along the interface between academia and social-environmental justice working within public, social enterprise and/or non-governmental organisation (NGO) sectors.

First impressions of the pilot module?

I was pleasantly surprised to come across topics not covered in my education journey so far, which is always very refreshing! This included perception framing, digital sustainability and the various ways King’s is decarbonizing and embedding sustainability throughout its activities (with, as always, more to be done/continue doing). Seminars with professionals about, for example, the neuroscience of eco-anxiety or how to ‘bring climate change home’ by highlighting its interconnections with everyday life, are some of several events that made the module engaging.

Joining the Take Action Team

The opportunity to join the Take Action team and add/improve content, was the absolute highlight. I contributed at least 12,000 words, leading on What is Sustainability, Climate Crisis and Social Sustainability sections, whilst coming across resources to help brainstorm ideas for my MSc dissertation.

I was adamant that ‘critical lenses’ of sustainability and climate change were integrated throughout as they are often discussed/practiced through a narrow (Western, Global North) perspective. Dreaming, implementing and governing just pathways out of the climate crisis require transcending dominant narratives of development and learning/unlearning downplayed or silenced voices.

Skills & Experience Gained?

Ensuring content is understandable and accessible for all has developed my skills in science communication, adaptability, and critical thinking. I also helped organize events and create/edit audio of podcast episodes. This was a fantastic experience to interview staff from an NGO I volunteer for, the Environmental Investigation Agency. I look forward to developing public speaking skills during a Q&A event with the Collective for Climate Action (another organization I volunteer with), in February 2023 – look-out!

Greatest Challenge?

Given my passion for the topics and their infinite scope, it was difficult to avoid information-overload. Several times when I had to reflect on the bigger picture and remember key learning objectives of the module, which helped condense content. The Take Action Team’s auditing and peer-review sessions were also very useful.

Final thoughts and why you should join the module and/or Take Action team!

Joining this module will broaden your conception of sustainability and climate change and importance of understanding alternative perspectives, if we hope to transition to more just and inclusive futures for all of (non)human Nature.

The Take Action team welcomes any students, staff or alumni, to add/improve content or help with communications. You will not only gain behind-the-scenes into Keats, but also feel closer to the university by engaging with various academic and professional services staff. Finally, for anyone interested in a career in education, sustainability, climate science/action, this is an invaluable opportunity for you.

Welcome to King’s Sustainability: events

September 7, 2022 / Jone De Roode Jauregi

Are you interested in all things sustainable and making a positive impact whilst at King’s? This Welcome Fortnight, the Sustainability team have prepared an exciting range of events for you to learn more about climate and sustainability. Check them out below. You can also find us at various hubs and fairs – come have a chat!

Introduction to Sustainability	12/09/2022, 14:00-14:45	Online	Are you passionate about sustainability and want to make a difference? Join the King’s Sustainability Team to learn more about what King’s is doing around sustainability, and how you can get involved.
Climate Action at King’s	13/09/2022, 15:00-16:00	Online	What action is King’s taking on the climate crisis? How can you take individual and collective climate action while at King’s? Join this session to find out more about King’s recently approved Climate & Sustainability Action Plan and opportunities to get involved in climate action at King’s.
Volunteering for Sustainability	14/09/2022, 14:00-15:00	Online	Passionate about sustainability and climate change? Want to do more to help local communities? Join King’s Volunteering and King’s Sustainability to find out how you can take action for sustainability and volunteer to help meet the UN Sustainability Development Goals. Projects include: Climate Action Network, Sustainability Champions programme, KEATS Sustainability & Climate module and education for sustainability mapping project. You will also learn more about the King’s Volunteering platform, discover sustainability-related opportunities with our partner charities and organisations and find out how to log hours/get recognition for the volunteering work you do. Explore sustainability at King’s and discover volunteering opportunities that are directly tied to the SDGs to kickstart your sustainability journey! This event is for all students at King’s.
Take action on sustainability at home	15/09/2022, 15:00-16:00	Online	Do you care about sustainability but not sure where to start? Join this session to hear some useful tips from the King’s Sustainability Team on how to be more sustainable (and possibly even save some money!) in the home environment.
Sustainability & Volunteering Creative Hackathon	20/09/2022, 14:00-16:00	Strand MB4.2	Join us in exploring ways to change the world during your time at King’s! We’ll be tackling the UN Sustainable Development Goals through Sustainability and Volunteering projects at King’s and in our local communities. Let’s get creative – in this hackathon, we’ll provide a range of creative prompts and art supplies to help you create solutions to some of the world’s biggest challenges. You’ll get to know other students, think about social and environmental impact, and work together to imagine the answers and shape the future direction of the Sustainability, Volunteering and Culture teams. We’ll provide snacks, refreshments & art supplies! This event is for all students at King’s.
Tour a sustainable lab at King’s	21/09/2022, 13:30-15:30	Guy’s campus – Guys Memorial Garden	Join this session to learn more about sustainable labs at King’s! Labs are extremely energy and resource intensive, so you’ll hear about what labs at King’s are doing on their sustainability journey. You’ll explore why lab sustainability is important, while also experiencing a guided tour of two labs to see what they’re doing. There will be lots of space for questions with lab sustainability champions, and you’ll hear more about what you can do to get involved!
Sustainability games night	22/09/2022, 16:00-18:00	Strand MB2.2	Are you interested in learning more about sustainability? Or want to prove your sustainable knowledge? Join our quiz night that’ll be full of games, quizzes and competition! It’ll be a great session to meet like-minded students and the King’s Sustainability Team while learning more about sustainability in a fun way.
Vegan and sustainable food at King’s	23/09/2022, 15:00-17:00	Somerset Room, Strand	Join this event with King’s Food and King’s Sustainability teams to find out more about vegan and sustainable food initiatives – and leave with a bag full of yummy vegan snacks!

Have a look at how you can get involved with King’s Sustainability. Make a difference during your time at King’s!

How to register

You’ll need to download the Life at King’s app from the App store (you can download onto iOS and Android.)
You’ll need to download the Welcome to King’s Guide for all information for new students. To access this guide, you’ll need to enter our passphrase reggielion22 (no spaces)
- The Welcome to King’s Guide will be the first stage of welcoming you into university, offering a range of information from ID card collection to new opportunities at King’s.
When you’ve downloaded the Life at King’s app, you will need to create an account; we advise that you use your King’s email address to create an account. 
Once you’ve set up your account, allow ‘push notifications’ on your device, so you can receive important messages.
Go to Welcome Events & Workshops and scroll down to “Sustainability”
Check out our events across the two weeks and register by clicking “+”

Get ready for another year of sustainability action at King’s

August 25, 2022 / Jone De Roode Jauregi

Are you interested in all things sustainable and making a positive impact whilst at King’s? The Sustainability team have a range of volunteering opportunities, events, and other ways to learn more about climate and sustainability.

Enrol on the KEATS Sustainability & Climate module, volunteer in the Climate Action Network or Sustainability Champions programme, join a committee to make your residence more sustainable, or attend one of the many events throughout the year. Find out more and pick your project below!

KEATS Sustainability Module, Seminar Series, and Take Action Team
The online module on Sustainability & Climate is an open-access and interdisciplinary module covering the biggest topics in sustainability from climate change and food to sustainable finance and social justice. It has been fully co-created by a Take Action Team which currently includes about 50 students, staff, and alumni members. It has been complemented by a Sustainability Seminar Series and other events to build a sense of community and support participants in developing transferable skills. The module and seminar series are relaunching in October 2022. Register here.

King’s Climate Action Network
The King’s Climate Action Network (CAN) is an open, interdisciplinary forum bringing together people from the King’s community who are passionate about climate action. It was created in October 2020 to co-create the university’s approach to climate action and now has more than 300 members. It focuses on solutions to reduce our carbon emissions while maximising our positive impact on climate action, through 7 themes: Zero Carbon Estate, Procurement and Waste, Travel, Responsible Investment, Students & Education, Community & Engagement, and Zero Carbon Research. Join the King’s CAN.

One of the current CAN projects is the climate listening campaign in our local communities which aims to hear first-hand about the climate and sustainability challenges they face and to identify how King’s students and staff can work with them. Get involved.

Sustainability Champions
The university’s Sustainability Champions are staff who work on campus and in our residences to make King’s a more sustainable working environment; reducing the negative and maximising the positive social and environmental impacts. Throughout the year, Sustainability Champions work on implementing projects and actions and working toward gaining a Bronze, Silver or Gold Award. Find out more.

Sustainability Month
King’s Sustainability Month takes place every year in February. This month is a collaboration between King’s and KCLSU that offers all those involved an opportunity to learn more about sustainability topics, collaborate and connect with others from across King’s and #TakeAction on the climate crisis. The month includes exciting events organised by people from across the King’s community focused on one or more of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Check out Sustainability Month 2022.

King’s Community Garden
Did you know King’s has a Community Garden on campus? Email kingscommunitygarden@kcl.ac.uk if you would like to contribute to this garden or get more information. Check out how to find King’s Wolfson Card Courtyard Community Garden here.

Podcast
The King’s Spotlight on Sustainability podcast aims to draw attention to sustainability at King’s and beyond. The goal is to get you thinking about some of the issues and challenges we face regarding climate change and the natural world by highlighting some of the excellent work surrounding sustainability happening at King’s and on a local, national and global level. Start listening here.

Sustainable Residences
Students living in King’s Residences can participate in the Sustainable Living Community buddy scheme and join the Sustainable Living Communities Facebook group.

If you want to set up your own sustainability project with friends, a society, or individually, you can also get in touch with the team for support. Any ideas, feedback, things to promote, are always welcome: sustainability@kcl.ac.uk.

All of those who make a significant contribution to sustainability at King’s will be recognised through the Sustainability Awards and/or the King’s Experience Champion for Change Awards.

Expand your positive impact to local communities by signing up to volunteer with King’s Volunteering.

Make a difference during your time at King’s!

Take part in the climate listening campaign in the community

August 15, 2022 / Jone De Roode Jauregi

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

Sustainability Awards 2022

August 4, 2022 / Jone De Roode Jauregi

This blog post was written by Lavinia Allen, King’s Sustainability Projects Assistant. You can read the news story on King’s central pages here.

On Monday 18th July 2022, students and staff came together at the King’s Sustainability Awards to celebrate the efforts and achievements of everyone who has worked tirelessly this year to make King’s a more sustainable place.

The ceremony took place in the Great Hall on Strand Campus. This was the first in-person awards ceremony since 2019, making it extra special. During the core of the ceremony, we celebrated the hard work of the 500+ staff Sustainability Champions who completed 2,800 actions on sustainability this year.

Group photo of Sustainability Award attendees and Senior Leaders.

61 Sustainability Champions teams were awarded:

1 Working Towards Sustainability Dozen
13 Sustainability Dozen
7 Bronze
1 Working Towards Silver
5 Silver
34 Gold

Office and Residence Teams:

Sustainability Dozen	Bronze	Silver	Gold
Clinical Pharmacology	James Black Centre Offices	Arts & Humanities Cluster Offices (Working Towards)	Entrepreneurship Institute
Deans Office	Research Management and Innovation Directorate	Vascular Biology & Inflammation	Estates and Facilities, Lavington Street
Denmark Hill Estates and Facilities			Geography
Global Mobility Office (Working Towards)			Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience
Guys & Waterloo Chaplaincies			King’s Sport
International Development			School of Global Affairs
King’s Online/KPED			Service Centre
Libraries & Collections, Franklin-Wilkins Library			Social Mobility & Widening Participation
Libraries & Collections, IoPPN Library			Strand Estates and Facilities
Libraries & Collections, Maughan Library			The Dickson Poon School of Law
Libraries & Collections, New Hunts’ House Library			Wolfson House Residence
Libraries & Collections, St Thomas’ House Library
Libraries & Collections, Weston Education Centre Library

Lab Teams:

Bronze	Silver	Gold
Biological Services	Centre for Developmental Neurobiology	Analytical, Environmental and Forensic Sciences – DNA analysis
Centre for Inflammation Biology and Cancer Immunology	Engineering	Analytical, Environmental and Forensic Sciences – Drug Control Centre
Division of Women & Children’s Health (Hodgkin)	Institute of Hepatology	Analytical, Environmental and Forensic Sciences – Genetic and Environmental Toxicology
Human & Applied Physiological Sciences		Analytical, Environmental and Forensic Sciences – King’s Forensics
Physics Research Labs (Nanophotonics Suite)		Analytical, Environmental and Forensic Sciences – Lab 4.134
Randall Division of Cell and Molecular Biophysics		Basic and Clinical Neuroscience
		Cardiovascular Research
		Centre for Gene Therapy & Regenerative Medicine
		Chemistry Research
		Chemistry Teaching
		Diabetes Research Group
		Dissecting Room
		Division of Women & Children’s Health (St Thomas’)
		Geography
		Guy’s Multi Disciplinary Labs
		Innovation Hub, Guy’s Cancer Centre
		James Black Centre: Cardiovascular Sciences
		Nutrition Sciences
		School of Immunology & Microbial Sciences
		SGDP Centre, Molecular Genetics Lab
		Twin Research (The Rayne Institute)
		Vascular Biology & Inflammation
		Wolfson Centre for Age-related Diseases

Director of Sustainability, Kat Thorne, hosting the awards ceremony.

We also had a Special Awards category where we recognised and celebrated the hard work of individuals and groups who took part in sustainability initiatives, projects, and programmes this year.

Members of staff in this category included:

Dola Akanmu
Glyn Jones
Kautuk Chaddha
IoPPN offices

Other wider groups:

84 students who completed the KEATS Sustainability & Climate Module (between March-June)
6 students who took part in the Sustainable Development Goal Curriculum Mapping project
6 students and staff from the King’s Climate Action Network
5 students and alumni who co-hosted and co-produced the Spotlight on Sustainability Podcast
School of Global Affairs communications team
Damely Akizhanova for their work on the Sustainability Residence Committees
The King’s Procurement Team

A variety of celebratory cakes.

THANK YOU!

A massive thank you to everyone who has contributed to our successes at King’s this year. The combined efforts of everyone involved have a significant impact and aid in achieving our university sustainability goals.

Achievements this year include:

King’s has reduced its carbon emissions by more than half (51%) since 2005/06 baseline
King’s has divested from all fossil fuels – one year ahead of schedule
King’s ranked in top 5 UK universities for environmental & social impact in the Times Higher Education (THE) Impact Rankings, as well as second in the UK in the People & Planet League table this year.
500+ people taking part in the Sustainability Champions programme and 350+ members of the Climate Action Network (CAN)
Between September 2021 and July 2022, over 1,400 attendees came together across 87 events and training opportunities ran by the King’s Sustainability Team
The development of the KEATS Sustainability & Climate module, which had over 600 students and staff enrol and over 180 complete the full module and receive sustainability awards
Over 1000 modules mapped against the Sustainable Development Goals, carried out with the help of over 60 trained students and staff
All King’s suppliers must now sign up to the Sustainability Supply Chain Code of Conduct. This is a huge step to reducing our carbon emissions, as our supply chain is the biggest source of carbon (scope 3)
King’s Food & Venues choice menus are now 70% vegetation and vegan
King’s has recently been awarded the highest rating of three stars by the Sustainable Restaurant Association (SRA) rating, as well as being re-accredited as a Fairtrade university.

Join us! There are lots of projects and ways to get involved in sustainability at King’s:

If you would like to find out more about becoming a Sustainability Champion, please register via this form and contact the Sustainability Team at sustainability@kcl.ac.uk.
If you would like to join the Climate Action Network, register here.
If you would like to enrol on the KEATS Sustainability & Climate module (to be re-launched in October ‘22), register here. If you would like to join the Take Action team of students and staff developing this module – please email sustainability@kcl.ac.uk.
If you are a student living in a hall of residence and would like to get involved in shaping the Sustainability Living Communities programme, get in touch.

King’s Sustainability Team. From left to right: Rachel Harrington-Abrams, Emily Read, Tasnia Yasmin, Kat Thorne, Alexandra Hepple, Jone De Roode Jauregui, Lavinia Allen, Nicola Hogan.

King’s is a finalist in the Green Gown Awards

July 26, 2022 / Jone De Roode Jauregi

This blog post was written by Rosa Roe Garcia, King’s Sustainability’s Digital Communications Assistant.

We are thrilled to announce that King’s has three finalists for the 2022 Green Gown Awards UK & Ireland. These awards are intended to recognise the outstanding sustainability initiatives at different universities and colleges. We are so proud of these three finalists who have worked so hard to integrate sustainability into King’s.

The King’s Climate Action Network (CAN) has been chosen as a finalist in the 2030 Climate Action Category. This category focuses on the steps that institutions are taking or plan to take in order to meet their sustainability targets. The King’s CAN is an open, interdisciplinary forum for co-creating and implementing the university’s Climate and Sustainability Action Plan.

With many sub-groups tackling a wide range of climate issues, this network always puts students and staff at the center of our approach to climate action. More than 350 students and staff have joined the King’s CAN since its beginnings in October 2020. The judges described it as innovative engagement centered on staff and students.

We have two finalists in the category of sustainability champions: a student and a staff member. This category recognises individuals who have worked incredibly hard to implement a sustainability project that has had a positive impact on their colleagues, their institution, or the local community.

Clarisse Mace is a finalist for the student sustainability champion category. She began volunteering with the King’s Sustainability Team to assist in the development of our new course, Sustainability & Climate: Learn, Discover, #TakeAction. She has covered various aspects of the climate crisis and sustainability with a diverse and growing group of students and staff. She has said “I am passionate about this project as I think that learning about climate change is the first step to taking action.”

Fatima Wang is a finalist for the staff sustainability champion. She has established nine green impact initiatives for MSc students studying sustainability in collaboration with Lambeth’s Air Quality Team and Business Improvement Districts. She also launched a new project on low traffic neighbourhoods in Lambeth to motivate residents to adopt greener modes of transport. She said “Through research, education and community engagement, universities have huge potential to have a positive impact on local communities and to forge unique collaborations.”.

Congratulations to the two individual finalists and all the members of the Climate Action Network. We are so happy all your hard work is being recognised and we look forward to the awards ceremony.

King's Sustainability