Green League rankings 2012

The Guardian has recently released the

guardian.co.uk/news/datablog/2011/jun/07/university-green-league-nottingham-trent-environment" target="_self">Green League rankings for 2012; UCL has improved its Green League points this year, but fallen slightly in the rankings table.

The Green League rankings reflect People and Planet's assessment of environmental performance across the Higher Education Sector. In 2011, UCL was ranked joint 83rd with 28.5 points. The score reflects the processes that are in place and the performance of the university.

Improvements have been made since the last assessment and these are reflected in the increased rating of 32.5 Green League points this year- despite the fact that the position in the rankings table has fallen from 83 to 89.

Improvements have included recruiting a new Environmental Sustainability team and developing its approach to management of Environmental Sustainability issues. University-wide assessments of energy use and waste production have been carried out, and ways energy savings can be made and waste reduced have been explored. 

A series of engagement programmes have also been held: Green Impact was launched in October; a Student Switch was introduced in the Student Residences; and Go Green Week ran in February.

An Environmental Sustainability Strategy will be launched at UCL at the start of the 2012/13 academic year. This will be our first strategy and will set out the direction that we intend to take in the future. It will focus on: the investment which is need in the estate; the action which needs to be taken by departments, staff and students to manage environmental impacts; and the role of teaching and research in raising awareness and understanding. 

Richard Jackson, Head of Environmental Sustainability, UCL Estates