We went to Green Lancaster’s Sustainability Conference 2023

Green Lancaster held their annual Sustainability Conference on Thursday 16th February 2023.

This conference was an opportunity for members of the staff and student body to contribute to Green Lancaster’s plans for the next year, as well as an opportunity for Green Lancaster to share the work they have been doing over the past year and their success so far.

For those of you who are unaware, Green Lancaster is a collaboration between Lancaster University and the Lancaster University Student Union whose focus is on implementing engagement opportunities.

Their mission statement is: “supporting our community with practical and transformative solutions to the climate and ecological emergencies.”

The four initiatives Green Lancaster focus on are: Transport and Mobility, Biodiversity and Agriculture, Energy Supply and Demand, and Resources and Circular Economy. As a participant at the conference there was the opportunity to visit separate tables which specialised on each of the four initiatives, and contribute your own personal suggestions and discuss the success and future of current strategies.

Some of the projects that you may have seen around campus include their “Don’t Ditch it” scheme which is an example of an implementation of their Resources and Circular Economy initiative, as well as their “Dr Bike” workshop which is in Alexandra Square and is an application of their Transport and Mobility initiative.

Green Lancaster Manager Darren Axe stated that the Sustainability Conference is an “opportunity for students and staff to feed into the planning cycle” and that Green Lancaster is “the most democratic end of delivering strategies, working around the 17 UN Sustainable Development Goals and in line with UNESCO Sustainability Goals and implementing them in line with the student body”.

As an attendee to the Conference, students and staff were made to feel welcome and were able to talk to members of staff such as Paul Morris – the Director of Capital Development and Estate Operations, Jonathan Mills – the Carbon, Environment and Sustainability Manager, and Darren Axe – Green Lancaster Manager, as well as interacting with the current Green Lancaster team and discussing with like-minded participants.

If you are interested in hearing about future Green Lancaster events then they have an email list and are on various social medias under the handle “Green Lancaster”. Their website is also a great source of information for anyone who wants to find out more.

Featured image via @greenlancaster

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