Green Gown Awards 2015 - Best Newcomer - South West College - Winner

“Let’s Green SWC”

The “Let’s Green SWC” initiative takes a holistic approach to sustainability across the institution by seeking to identify and address the impacts that day-to-day College activities have upon the environment at local, national and global levels.

The initiative to enhance the sustainability credentials of SWC is based around a “three-pronged” approach which addresses (i) investment in renewable energies and energy-saving technologies, (ii) promoting an environmental ethos and behavioural change amongst all College users, and (iii) greening our contract management.

Thanks to the foresight and vision of College management and the dedication and commitment of the College Estates and Sustainability Team, the “Let’s Green SWC” initiative has served to dramatically reduce SWC’s environmental footprint while simultaneously providing tangible evidence and case studies which serve to supplement the College’s taught offerings across the sustainability spectrum.

Top 3 learnings

1 The pursuit of environmental sustainability need not be prohibitively expensive. Many of the most effective initiatives are low-cost and can serve to simultaneously reduce both day-to-day operating costs and the College’s environmental footprint.

2 Developing a close working rapport with your suppliers can provide a major boost to achieving your environmental sustainability goals and ambitions.

3 Implementing the various sustainability initiatives on-site is immensely beneficial in promoting a “do as we do” approach to our students, particularly those partaking in our taught courses across the sustainability spectrum.

Videos

• “Let’s Green SWC” (click to hide)