A host of sustainability activities, including a special debate on air quality in the city, will be taking place across the University of Worcester next week – during its annual Go Green Week.
Free plants will be on offer at next week's Go Green Week
All week (February 6 – 10) there will be various activities for students, staff and the wider community, such as advice on how to save energy and water and what to recycle and where, as well as free giveaways of food and plants.
The Air Quality Debate will take place on Friday, February 10 and will feature Lord Victor Adebowale CBE, Chair of the NHS Confederation, as well as representatives from Worcestershire Regulatory Services, First Bus, the health sector, the University’s Vice Chancellor, Professor David Green CBE, and the University’s Director of Sustainability, Katy Boom.
The panel will discuss air quality in the city and the impact this has on health. The event runs from 1.30pm in the Students’ Union building at the St John’s Campus and is open to members of the community as well as university staff and students.
It comes as the Government yesterday (January 31) published its Environmental Improvement Plan 2023, setting out plans to restore nature and improve the environmental quality of the air.
Professor David Green CBE, the University’s Vice Chancellor and Chief Executive, said: “We are delighted to be hosting this special Air Quality Debate as part of our Go Green Week to discuss the ways in which we can all work together to make improvements for our health and the wider environment. We’re so pleased that Lord Adebowale is able to join us, along with colleagues from the transport and health sectors. It should be a really fascinating discussion and I would encourage the wider community to come along and hear what is said.”
Go Green Week will also feature a host of other activities encouraging us all to be more sustainable, as well as wellbeing sessions with the Pets as Therapy dogs making a return to campus, plus a Cost of Living Marketplace at The Hive on Thursday evening.
Each day has a different theme. Monday will focus on nature and biodiversity and will include plant stalls, the chance to make a hedgehog house and take away free bird feeders. Tuesday will explore food and wellbeing, with samples of vegan food and advice on reducing food waste and buying just what you need. Wednesday looks at the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals, while Thursday is all about reusing and repairing items to prevent them ending up in landfill. Friday looks at transport and air quality and teaching carbon literacy.
The University’s Director of Sustainability, Katy Boom, said: “We are looking forward to another week of sustainable activities, helping both our own students and staff, as well as local schoolchildren who will be coming to various sessions, and the wider community to find ways to be more sustainable.
“At the University we believe that it’s important we play our part in both increasing our own sustainability but also inspiring our students and staff to take that message forward into the future. Each of us can make a difference by making small changes to our lives so we hope this will give people some ideas on what they could do to be more sustainable.”
In 2018, the University of Worcester became one of the first universities to sign the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals Accord, pledging to work towards a more sustainable future. The University was also among the first to declare a climate emergency, and to commit to a net-zero carbon target by 2030 for both direct and indirect carbon emissions.
The University’s commitment to sustainability is deep-seated, evidenced by the fact that it has been consistently ranked among the most sustainable institutions in the Country for more than a decade by the People and Planet League, and in 2019 was named Sustainability Institution of the Year in the Green Gown Awards.
The University, in close partnership with the Students’ Union, has pioneered many initiatives to promote sustainability over the last 15 years, including much improved recycling, promoting walking and cycling wherever possible, and practical changes such as introducing less energy intensive lighting and solar heated hot water.
To find out about all the events happening during Go Green Week visit www.susthingsout.com/go-green-week-2023-at-worcester/