At London South Bank University we are actively taking steps to become more eco-friendly. With thousands of students and staff members we have a huge collective power to help reduce the University's environmental impact and ensure a sustainable University for future generations.
We are currently running a number of initiatives to take active steps towards this goal.
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LSBU is the base for the London Regional Centre of Expertise (LRCE) in Education for Sustainable Development (ESD). The LRCE is a network of formal, informal and non-formal education organisations mobilised to deliver ESD to local and regional communities. The network is made up of schools, community and voluntary groups, the business sector, universities and non-governmental organisations, local authorities and other interested individuals.
RCEs are an integral part of the United Nations University. They were set up to aspire to achieve the United Nation's Decade of Education for Sustainable Development 2005-2014. The United Nations intends that the network of RCEs around the planet will become part of a Global Learning Space for Sustainable Development.
Our new distance learning MSc in Sustainable Energy Systems has come about in response to the increasing interest in this growing market and from the general increase of awareness of this important social-economic environment. Our MSc Building Services Engineering (Flexible Learning) starts in 2009.
London South Bank University has been evaluated by London Remade as having achieved an equivalent bronze level of the Mayor of London’s Green Procurement Code through significantly contributing towards the development of sustainable procurement practices by monitoring sustainable performance through our purchasing decisions.
Through our procurement practices London South Bank University has:
View the Mayor of London's Green Procurement Code report (PDF- 267KB opens in new window)
Leading environmental organizations highlight video as an effective “green” technology to reduce global warming. The University actively promotes the use of video conferencing to save time, cost and travel which inturn reduces our carbon footprint.
The University has installed 32 plumbed-in chilled water units across the campus to provide pure drinking water. This gives us a constant supply of water and hugely reduces the transportation of full and empty bottles.
Our Catering Services and Students' Union have worked together to gain Fairtrade accreditation for the University.Fairtrade is about securing better prices, decent working conditions, local sustainability and fair terms of trade for farmers and workers in the developing world. To date we have developed a Fairtrade Policy and the following Fairtrade products are available on in our food outlets: rice, coffee, tea and a selection of chocolates, bars, orange juice and sugar.
Through purchasing 'Resource' triple certified coffee which is organic, Fairtrade and Rainforest Alliance accredited, we have been donating money to the Cool Earth charity who purchase acres of threatened rainforest. Since September 2008 LSBU has bought enough products to save 2 acres of precious rainforest.
For further information visit the Fairtrade Foundation and Cool Earth websites.
In 2008, an audit of University facilities and services was undertaken in order to identify and assess what has already been achieved, work in progress and areas to be addressed. The audit comprised of nine principle categories which correlate with points in the LSBU Sustainable Development Policy as follows:
View LSBU Sustainability audit results (PDF- 55KB opens in new window)
A major new teaching building that recently opened on our Southwark campus has been designed to be highly sustainable in its construction and ongoing energy requirements. It also incorporates the Centre for Efficient and Renewable Energy in Buildings (CEREB), which is a focus for the research, teaching and demonstration of environmentally sustainable energy technologies.
Photovoltaic cells (solar panels) have been installed on the roof of our Borough Road building and they are producing up to 10 kW of renewable energy.
Our 1st year BSc (Hons) Product Design and Engineering Product Design students recently participated in a competition to design posters that raise awareness of Sustainability at LSBU. The competition was judged by Phil Jones (Chair of SDG), Lynda Bradish (Facilities Manager, responsible for waste management), Luke Robbins (KTP Associate - developing sustainable design tools at IDC (Industrial Design Consultancy)) and Annick Collins (Industrial Design Engineer and visiting lecturer). The first prize went to Luiz Penze for his Save the World campaign. Thanks go to Dr Deborah Andrews, Architecture & Design, Faculty of Engineering Science and the Built Environment who originated and organised the competition.
To view/download the posters, visit our Sustainability Posters page.
The former Bloomsbury Environmental Group has been reconstituted and expanded to cover all Higher Educational Institutes across Greater London. Alan Lee, from our Document & Copyright Services, will represent the Sustainable Development Group on the LUEG.
In due course, the LUEG will take a major role in influencing sustainable development and the use of costly, scarce and finite resources by universities, helping HEIs to show their commitment to their environmental corporate social responsibility. Download this government report on Corporate Social Responsibility (PDF 312KB - opens in new browser window) for further information.
LSBU's new in-house printers, M2, have introduced multi-functional devices (machines that combine a fax, printer and scanner), energy and cost efficient technologies and an online print request system.
New recycling bins have been introduced across our Southwark campus offering us a more flexible system that is expected to substantially reduce the waste going into our general waste bins.
Now we have single bins that take a wide range of recyclable materials including paper, drinks cans and plastic bottles. We hope all our colleagues and students participate fully in this simple but effective environmental initiative.
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