Sustainability excellence showcased at the UCL Green Impact Awards

Green Impact is an annual programme that empowers staff and students to improve their departmental environmental performance, save money and improve the sustainability literacy of their peers and colleagues. 

This year, teams from offices, labs, libraries and even UCL's catering outlets took part. Richard Jackson, Director of Sustainability, emphasised "the essential role that Green Impact teams play in improving UCL's impacts", highlighting "the big energy, resource and financial savings made possible by action from the UCL community".   

Vice-Provost Professor Anthony Smith commended the teams, giving "a huge thank you to everyone involved, and to the Sustainability Team for finding ways to bring these important issues to life".

Top-scoring teams received recycled awards created from a tree felled in UCL's Main Quad due to wind damage. You can watch a short video of the making of these trophies below. 

This year, Excellence Awards were also given to teams that had spent the year undertaking focused sustainability projects, including creating a wormery, improving the efficiency of one of UCL's electronic microscope labs, conducting research into staff and student environmental attitudes and organising a sustainability lecture series. A full list of award-winners can be found below. 

The Green Impact programme for 2015-16 will launch at the beginning of October 2015. For more information, please contact Alex Green. 

Green Impact Award Winners for 2014-15

Bronze Award Winners

• PACE - Public and Cultural Engagement
• ICH Refectory
• UCL JBR Refectory
• Immunology
• Epidemiology and Public Health

Silver Award Winners

• Dementia Research Centre
• Institute of Ophthalmology Library
• Political Science
• Ortho - the Institute of Orthopaedics Library
• Residences
• Institute of Archaeology Library

Platinum Award Winners

• Greenpharm - the School of Pharmacy Library
• Action on Hearing Loss and Ear Institute Libraries
• Green Comrades - SSEES Library
• Bartlett School of Planning
• Bartlett Library
• CEGE Green Group
• Queen Square Library
• Student and Registry Services
• UCL Language & Speech Science Library
• UCL Main and Science Libraries
• Wickford Zero Waste
• All the other good names argon
• Eastman Dental Library
• ICH Library
• G.I. Geog - UCL Department of Geography

Excellence Award Winners

UCL Institute of Archaeology
The Department of Archaeology’s Green Impact team focused on making their Scanning Electronic Microscope Lab more efficient. They recycled obsolete equipment, started using an online booking system to make more efficient use of their existing equipment, and in collaboration with Estates, are driving forward improvements to metering and energy efficiency. 

Royal Free Medical Library
The Royal Free Medical Library team decided to hold a series of lectures from guest speakers on the theme of sustainability, helping to engage and inspire colleagues with a range of issues including food waste, campaigning and biodiversity. 

Green Careers
UCL Careers made good use of their kitchen’s food waste by recycling it with a wormery. They’ve been working to create liquid fertiliser and compost for the plants in their office, and have done an incredible job bringing sustainability to life in their department with this programme. 

PALS - Psychology and Language Science
PALS undertook four projects this year. They’ve retained their title of UCL’s most active department and have done a massive amount, including undertaking experimental research into environmental behaviours at UCL; making videos and running a day-long green event; supporting research into recycling and running a competition aimed at finding technological solutions to the challenges of sustainability.