First signs of winter in South London.

Autumn is most definitely here and we are fast moving towards the winter. With the first frost this week now is the time to collect all those sloes you haven't yet plucked from the blackthorn bushes around the Avery Hill Campus. It has been a good mushroom hunting season this year, I have spotted many of the fabulous fungi on campus this term and will be doing my last mushroom hunting trip of the year this weekend on the North Downs of Surrey, not too far from us in South London.

Along with welcoming the colder seasons back we are also welcoming back Kat who has returned from Borneo ready to steer the Sustainability Team through to next spring. With the colder weather we also have to note people are starting to look towards the controls of their radiators thinking about cranking them up and making their offices meccas of warmth. Of course I would never tell people to sit in the cold all winter but perhaps we ought to have a look in our winter wardrobe before we all get a bit overzealous with the heating. Our friends at Do The Green Thing have come up with a rather marvellous idea, have a look here:



The good news is that thick woolly jumpers are definitely making a come back this season! For some reason they always do in winter?

In the meantime to make sure you don't waste too much energy (and money) this coming winter now will be a good time to invest in some extra loft insulation, it is probably even cheaper than you think and very easy to install. In fact we love loft insulation so much at the University of Greenwich we have been adding to and improving out current insulation all through 2010 to try and keep us all that little bit warmer this winter. Of course body insulation is a very good idea at this time of year, keep an eye out for those woolly jumpers as sported by Green Thing in the video above, and of course feel free to send in a picture of yourself in your most prized woolly jumper - I may even be able to wangle a prize for the most hideous. If you are going to turn the heating on make sure you do your best to keep the heat in your room, close the windows and look out for any drafts. If you do find a draft on campus make sure you report it to Facilities Management and if you find one at home you could try making your own draft stopper.

We can now also look forward to winter with the excitement of knowing that our Staff Sustainability Champions Network will be in full swing. On the 9th of November staff members from various schools and offices from across the University will be coming together at the Greenwich campus for the launch of the Champions Network and the Green Impact workbook. Staff Champions will be given a set number of tasks to achieve a bronze and a silver standard for their local area, there will also be several other awards to look out for including a gold award, most outstanding contribution to sustainability over the year and various others. We are also looking to generate some competition from our friends at the University of East London as they will be launching their Green Impact at the same time.


University of East London Stratford Campus

 We have also embarked on our first Biodiversity Steering Group Meeting, initially looking at the Avery Hill Campus the group has discussed a wide range of potential projects to be investigated further. Food growing spaces, wild flowers, managed woodlands, pooled streams, restored ponds and compost heaps were amongst the topics of conversation but before we dive straight in we will be surveying the campus and seeing what we already have. Debbie Bartlett, the University's very own environmental conservation expert and senior lecturer was on hand to give the advice while the sustainability team, campus management, resources and ground staff were all represented around the table as well. Debbie will be charging the student involvement on the group so look out if you're an Environmental student we could be seeing your input soon too.

The Dingle on the Mansion Site: Up for restoration?

I shall keep you updated on how we progress from here with regards to the Biodiversity Group, and if all goes well perhaps I will also be looking for people keen to try their hand at a bit of food growing on campus.

For those of you who we met at the GET Opportunities Fayre, we have your details and we are currently looking at projects that you can get involved in. of course if you see there being an opportunity for a project that you would be really keen to sink your teeth into don't be afraid to jump the gun and come and find us or send us a message to tell us what you would like to do.

There's a buzz around the University of Greenwich

There's a buzz here at the University of Greenwich. We have been working hard here at the Sustainability office and have some exciting new developments and have made progress across a few areas since I last updated you.

Firstly that buzz you may be able to hear if you have been around the Avery Hill Campus recently. We have our first University of Greenwich bees. In the gardens of Southwood House we have a few fuzzy friends buzzing around our new set of hives. Our bees are of the honey making variety (maybe if you are really nice to us we will be able to make some available to you) so expect to see some University of Greenwich branded honey in the future.

Keeping with the theme of biodiversity we have found a few more interesting species on campus here at Avery Hill, a Mullberry Tree has been found, plenty of blackberries have been harvested, an oak tree that must be well over 100 years old has been spotted and few interesting species of fungi too - though I haven't been confident enough to harvest any mushrooms yet over a fear of an upset stomach.

Mushrooms in the Southwood House garden

We have been toiling away in preparation for the new academic year at the University and preparing ourselves for Freshers' Week. Expect to find us represented at both the Avery Hill and Greenwich Campus fayres and looking for members of our new People & Planet Group, telling new students about the recycling facilities at the halls of residence and distributing all sorts of information regarding anything to do with sustainability to anyone willing to listen.

Svetta our new intern has been busy scouring the University for information on the recycling facilities and we expect we should be able to put out a reasonable guide covering all the facilities, policies and practices across the University as a whole in the near future. Helping us along the way have been a few RAs and you can expect to meet some of them at the Freshers' Fayres next week.

The University has also had it's first Fairtrade Steering Group meeting, attended by SUUG, Sodexo, ABM and representatives from the University itself, who will be trying to gain Fairtrade accreditation for the University by increasing the number of Fairtrade products on campus. As well as the lovely Fairtrade products you can expect to see on the shelves you should be finding sustainable food too - the University is finalising it's sustainable food policy as we speak.

My biggest excitement recently though has been the arrival of a draft Green Impact Workbook in my inbox. A little while ago Charlotte Bonner from the NUS dropped by to meet some of our already enrolled sustainability champions to get ideas for making the University more environmentally friendly. So far she has sent 40 ideas across to us to peruse, adapt and comment on before we get the workbook finalised when she returns from cycling the Col du Tourmalet in France - an enduring test of strength and guile that I am all too familiar with! There is A LOT more to follow on this one and I can't wait to keep you updated as we progress!