Tag Archives: Sustainable Campus

Reuse, Refill, Recycle

Could you buy nothing new for just one month?

Nothing New November is a UK wide challenge that calls the public to fight overconsumption and impulse purchases by buying nothing new for one month (excluding essentials like food etc). The aim is to waste less, make the most of the stuff we already own, and cut our carbon footprint (Keep Britain Tidy, 2024).

As part of Nothing New November, we have been thinking of ways to shop for essentials in a more planet friendly way! So, this month I have been exploring the independent, sustainable shops in and around Newcastle. I hope this blog will encourage others to pay these amazing little shops a visit, and we can all try to be a bit more mindful about the things we buy, and the waste we create.

How to use a re-fill shop?

Using a re-fill shop can seem a bit daunting if you haven’t done it before, so I’ve put together some tips to help first time shoppers:

Collect some empty containers, glass jars work well. Often the re-fill shops have some you can buy too so don’t worry if you don’t have any.
Take a list of items you’d like to buy with rough measurements of how much you need, and head to the re-fill shop with your clean, empty containers.
When you arrive, speak to the staff! They are always so helpful and explain the process to you. But normally they weigh your empty jars before you fill them up.
Then just fill up your jars with whatever you please and the containers will be weighed again, and price totalled up at the till like any other shop.
Enjoy all your plastic free goodies!

Re-fill shops around Newcastle

109 General Store, Heaton

109 General Store is a family run low-waste general store located on Heaton Park Road. They have a variety of green cleaning products, sweet treats, fruit, veg, local eggs and fresh bread from Northern Rye. The in-store staff are friendly and are happy to help customers, or you can order food online for click and collect. I often do my weekly shop here then pop next door to their sister shop Heaton Perk for a coffee, Newcastle’s only coffee shop exclusively using glass bottled dairy milk.

2. Ernie, Stepney Road, Ouseburn

Ernie is a small deli shop located in Ouseburn which sells organic veg, household refills, and unique local cooking items and gifts from sustainable and small businesses. You can order locally sourced fresh produce to your door using Ernie’s fresh delivery service, delivered on Fridays by bicycle!

‘Real people, real food, less is more, buy less, buy better – making a difference is always within reach.’
(Ernie Ouseburn, 2024)

3. Buy the Kilo, Tynemouth

Buy the kilo is another family-run refill shop located on platform one of Tynemouth metro station. After a walk on the beach, I stopped off to check out this shop and pick up some oat milk. The shop is hidden down a little alley of independent businesses in shipping containers, which if you’re not looking for you probably would never notice! It was my first time visiting the shop, and the ladies working in the shop were more than happy to help and walked me through exactly how to work the weighing system. The shop also exhibits artists’ work that highlights issues about the environment, making it a must visit if you’re in Tynemouth!

Thank you for reading this blog, I hope you enjoyed it! A big thank you to the owners of these shops for all their efforts in reducing waste. Let us know in the comments if you visit any!

The 2024 Christmas Switch Off at Newcastle University

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What is the Christmas Switch Off?

The Christmas Switch Off is a University-wide campaign where we encourage staff and students to turn off any electrical items that can be switched off instead of leaving them on standby over the Christmas break.

Why is the Christmas Switch Off important?

By turning off everything that can be turned off, we will reduce our energy consumption across the campus. The Christmas Switch Off campaign has been run for a number of years to minimise energy wastage and contribute to our carbon reduction targets.

We also hope that promoting of the Christmas Switch Off will promote positive behaviour change more widely and remind colleagues and students to minimise their energy wastage by remembering to switch off what they can every day.

Who participates in the Switch Off?

We would like everyone at the university to participate if they are able to, that includes staff and students across labs, offices, and accommodation. The advice on what to turn off will vary for each location – guidance on what should be switched off is in this blog post.

When switching off your work area, it can be helpful to organise a switch off team that can check each area after most people have left for the term to ensure everything that can be switched off, has been.

Here are some examples of items that could be switched in various area across campus:

Staff working in offices: Lighting, computers, monitors, printers and photocopiers, kettles and fridges (after they have been emptied and cleaned). Also, it is important to make sure that all windows have been properly closed.
Labs and medical buildings: All the above can be applied in addition to drying cupboards, fume cupboards and fridges/freezers that will not be in use over the break (please do not turn off equipment that is in use).

Many students leave their accommodation over the Christmas break, meaning their accommodation will be empty over the holidays. If you are going away over the winter break, there are a few things that you could do before you leave:

Clean out and defrost your fridges and freezers the day before you leave by turning them off at the wall and popping a towel underneath to soak up the melted ice.
Turn off your kettles and toasters at the wall.
If there is a wall switch for your oven this is also a good thing to turn off easily, as well as lights and plug sockets.

For more switch off information, visit the Sustainable Campus website: https://bit.ly/3OP5yLN

If you have any questions or ideas about the Christmas Switch Off, please email the Sustainability Team at sustainable-campus@ncl.ac.uk

Thank you for reading!

Nature Positive Student Ambassador Programme

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Nature Positive is a term that refers to the reversing of nature loss and encourages ecosystem recovery. The Nature Positive Universities network is comprised of over 500 higher educational institutions worldwide who have all committed to protecting biodiversity by signing the Nature Positive Pledge. The network was jointly founded by the University of Oxford and the UN Environment Programme in December 2022. If you’re interested in finding out more about Nature Positive and how as a student you can get involved, keep reading!

Image: The aim of the Nature Positive Universities group; reversing the biodiversity loss curve. Credit: Nature Positive Universities.

What is the student ambassador programme?

If you are a student and interested in the Nature Positive ethos, check out the Student Ambassador Programme. Every year, Nature Positive Universities welcome students to apply for this program, giving them the opportunity to play a part in #GenerationRestoration while collaborating with students from other universities on a global scale.

The programme is an exciting blend of practical and collaborative activities, with no two days being the same!

Some benefits you will gain upon joining the programme:

Experience volunteering with mentors at University of Oxford

A chance to make a difference on our campus

Networking with a global community of environmental activists

Resources and training to help you organise events and activities

A certificate documenting your role

A chance to exercise your personal skills such as social media, communications, design, organising events, translation and biological identification and survey techniques

Image: Nature Positive student ambassadors volunteering in a field. Credit: Nature Positive Universities.

How can I apply?

Applying for the programme only takes 10 minutes and could seriously boost your CV, if you are interested in working within the environmental or urban planning sector.

Sign-ups for the 2024/2025 Nature Positive Student Ambassador Programme are currently open and the deadline to apply is the 10th November 2024.

Link to apply: https://www.naturepositiveuniversities.net/become-an-ambassador/

To find out more on what the sustainable campus team are doing to fulfil the Nature Positive Pledge, check out our blog post on Biodiversity Net Gain, or visit the Biodiversity page on our website!

Sustainable Drainage Systems: The Future of Flood and Water Management

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Sustainable Drainage Systems (SuDS) are key to building sustainable cities and countering the influence of urbanisation. These eco-friendly solutions maintain habitats, support natural cycles, and protect human communities. Since 2023, it is now a legal requirement for all new major developments to include SuDS in their planning.

Newcastle University has great research infrastructure in this area, including the UKCRIC National Green Infrastructure Facility (“the living laboratory”) and the Newcastle Urban Observatory. This blog will explore how SuDS work and their importance, using a current student’s project as a steering guide. Enjoy!

What are SuDS and why are they important?

The main purpose of SuDS is to mimic the natural processes that urbanisation has impeded, i.e. the infiltration of water into the ground. Smaller projects use methods like installing green roofs or rain gardens while large-scale projects use basins and swales (flood ditches).

Check out this helpful video for an in-depth explanation of SuDS, linking their function to the University’s Green Infrastructure Facility:

So, what are the actual benefits of SuDS over traditional drain systems? SuDS are known to:

Decrease risk from flooding
Reduce flood damage costs
Improve water quality
Act as a carbon store
Support biodiverse habitats and animals

Image: Snapshot of a hidden drainage grate among greenery and purple flowers. Demonstrates the contrast between manmade installations and natural stores. Credit: John Donoghue.

“Domestic SuDS Planter: Design, Construction and Evaluation”

During her study, Madeleine Tate found herself drawn to water and flood management, which inspired her MEng dissertation project. Madeleine chose to install and test a sustainable planter box at Kensington Terrace accommodation. The research aim was to combat the issue of increased storm water affecting the residential sector. Kensington Terrace proved to be a perfect location:

“Everyday I go into university I walk past and check on it. It’s quite easy to collect data from.”

Image: Close up photograph of the SuDS planter, showing the pipe diversion, the overlaying gravel, and the blooming plants. Credit: Madeleine Tate.

Madeleine’s planter collects rainwater from the roof and interrupts its flow by slowing it down. The water flow is filtered a variety of soil layers within the planter (see image below for a layer breakdown). After the water has moved through the layers, it passes through a geotextile, finally exiting the planter via an outlet. This outlet deposits water back into the drain system. Thus, the mechanism slows down the journey from roof to drain, giving the traditional system more time to cope. Crucially, this reduces flood and Combined Sewer Overflow risk.

Interestingly, the planter itself was made from a reused intermediate bulk container, which was cut down and repainted. How innovative!

Image: Diagram showing how the planter in Kensington Terrace works. Shows soil layers and step-by-step route of rainwater through the system. Credit: Madeleine Tate.

Project Success

Madeleine’s planter is still in the process of collecting data but has so far proven to be a success! Here we can see a graph comparing inflow levels to outflow levels for rainfall events in May and June 2024. The orange outflow dataset is consistently lower than the blue inflow dataset, by up to 75%. This mirrors the slow pace of the flow travelling through the soil layers.

Image: A graph tracking water inflow and outflow in the planter for events from May 1^st – June 19^th. Credit: Madeleine Tate.

The Future of Planters and SuDS

Due to its success, the planter installation will remain at Kensington Terrace and will continue to produce meaningful data. Madeleine is now in the process of starting her PhD, looking at how these planters can be scaled up. She is collaborating with Newcastle City Council to project datasets, visualising a city where these planters are installed in all houses and drainpipes. In what Madeleine deems the “snowballing effect,” this initial planter innovation will open the door for more similar schemes:

“The future should bring more research; more use and more awareness”

As the threat of climate change becomes more imminent, SuDS and modelling wide-scale integration will prove to be an important tool for risk prevention. If no action is taken, water systems are bound to collapse due to heavier rainfall.

I would like to thank Madeleine Tate for her extensive help and her informative graphics. She ensured that my first post on the sustainability blog was both inspiring and educational! For more information about the UKCRIC National Green Infrastructure Facility, click here. If you are interested in learning what Sustainable Campus are doing for water management, click here.

Thank you for reading!

Bees on Campus

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Bees provide a range of important services that help maintain the health and vibrancy of our natural environment in both rural and urban settings. In our beautiful city-centre campus, for instance, urban bees assist our Grounds Team in caring for greenery from the wildflower meadows in Claremont Court to the tulip beds outside King’s Gate. To learn more about these fascinating creatures and their role in creating our sustainable campus, I had a chat with the lovely people at Newcastle University’s Bee Society.

Image: Members of the University community walk through the greenery of the Old Quad. Credit: Chris Bishop

How many beehives does the Society have and how long has the University had bees?

“At present there are 2 beehives, although the number fluctuates between 2-4 depending on how the years go – our hives are called Mary and Delilah! We’ve had bees since the mid-2010s.”

I see! Do you know if there are any other urban beehives in or around the University? 

“While I haven’t interacted with them, I’m aware that other university staff have beehives for the sake of research. Newcastle is also home to a chapter of the BBKA (British Beekeeping Association) so it’s safe to assume that there are a few beekeepers knocking around locally.”

So, what sort of thing does the society do to care for the bees? 

“The nature of beekeeping changes depending on the season – understanding the calendar and how to respond to it is vital to successful care. In the summer we check on the hives once a week (weather permitting), as the time between April-July is prime for swarms. In early spring and the autumn, we check on them far less frequently, once a fortnight or so. In the winter we don’t go in the hives at all.

How long our checks take is also dependent on the time of year. In the summer it often runs up into the 2-hour mark! We use an acronym to remember what needs to be looked for: D.E.F.R.A, which stands for Disease, Eggs, Food, Room, and Anything Else. The presence of food and eggs are often my main concern, and after a certain point the observations become second nature.

We always wear suits and gloves for the sake of our members. Stings do occur from time to time, but to a significant extent the victims are members of committee who have to engage with the bees when they are at their most defensive. While this is scary at first it is something you get used to over time; I have been known to scold the hives when they’re acting up!”

And do the honey and wax get used for anything? 

“When there is surplus honey, we collect it. Last year we involved our members in the processing of the comb and this went down very well, but it isn’t a priority for us. Excess wax has been used by a few of the University’s fine art undergraduates in the production of candles.”

That’s super interesting! How can people get involved? 

“The primary way that people can get involved is to join the society! While the hives are now being left alone for the winter, we have talks running throughout the colder months and are always happy to share our knowledge and experience.”

Image: a bed of tulips on campus. Credit: John Donoghue

How do the bees help with local biodiversity? 

“Bees are vital to the healthy functioning of plant life and our bees can often be seen collecting pollen and nectar from the flowers on campus. They roam quite widely – up to a distance of around 5 miles – but with so many options on show in our green spaces I imagine that they don’t have to go far for food. Most of the time they’ll travel less than a mile – pollinating a variety of species in and around campus.”

What sort of role can urban bee keeping play in a sustainable future? 

“Urban beekeeping has a place alongside the protection of other bee species, but I believe that the awareness it brings is one of the most valuable things it has to offer. The honeybee is not in any danger at the moment, but our native bee populations of bumblebees and solitary bees are in serious decline, and no one pollinator can fill the role of all these individual species. By encouraging informed beekeeping practices and the support of wildflowers/bee-friendly spaces, urban beekeepers can provide both the efficient pollination efforts of their bees and the knowledge and care that we desperately need to protect our pollinators on a wider scale.”

So, there you have it! A huge thank you to our wonderful Bee Society, please go check out the amazing work that they do and next time you’re enjoying our beautiful urban green spaces – spare a thought for the hardworking creatures who keep them looking lush!

Planning sustainably at Newcastle University

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Image: Members of the University community walk through the greenery-framed arches of King’s Gate. Credit: John Donoghue.

The University’s lovely Planning Team are responsible for designing and delivering our campus’s impressive variety of beautiful and cutting-edge spaces, both indoor and outdoor. This work has a major role to play in the environmental commitments of our institution and so we decided to have a chat with our friends in Planning to see how they’re incorporating sustainability into their practice. Here’s what we learnt.

How Planning works

One of the main functions of the Planning Team is to receive and solve Space and Project Requests (SPRs) which are sent to them by colleagues all across the University. These requests might involve the creation of a new teaching space for a growing department, for instance, or perhaps the conversion of a room to provide specialist resources. For each request, the Planning Team devises solutions to provide for the requester’s varied needs and maximise the potential of the spaces involved. As part of this process, our planners pay close attention to the sustainability of each project throughout its conception and delivery in a number of impactful ways.

Image: the newly renovated Herschel Learning Lab in the Herschel Building. Credit: John Donoghue.

Sustainable practice

Importantly, following the Carbon Literacy Training that some members of the team undertook, the Planning Team have developed a “carbon conscious methodology” for their work which incorporates a range of sustainable approaches and complements the environmental guidance written into the University’s procurement framework. These methods range from limiting hard landscaping and protecting green areas where possible, to considering how spaces can be designed in a versatile manner to accommodate several uses at different times. Additionally, when delivering on SPRs, the team considers sustainability from the very outset by conducting their own research to ensure the necessity of each request. This evaluation is then followed by a consideration of how existing spaces and features can be reused to lengthen their life – similar to repairing clothes instead of buying new!

Where items are no longer needed or replaced, however, the team puts the responsibility for dealing with the unwanted furnishings on the requester, to ensure that simply throwing items away is never the easiest option. Thanks to this, these items are then either reused somewhere else in the University (via our furniture reuse list, for example!) or are disposed of responsibly by contractors such as the wonderful people at RightGreen. As if this wasn’t enough already, the team are also full of ideas for how their planning can become even more sustainable in future!

Image: Flowers and greenery in the Old Quad. Credit: Charlotte Robson.

Sustainable futures

Core to these aspirations is a holistic view of the planning process. This involves taking moments to pause and consider the sustainability of each aspect of a project, for instance, and considering the full lifecycle of each space including how it can be reused and/or returned to nature at the end of its lifespan. One of their ideas for putting this into practice is adapting University College London’s Laboratory Efficiency Assessment Framework (LEAF), which Newcastle University uses, to allow those submitting SPRs for a variety of spaces to gain accreditation for environmentally friendly reuse and refurbishment. These ideas build on the amazing suite of sustainable policies our planning team already utilises to offer an exciting vision of what the future of Planning could look like at Newcastle University.

So, next time you’re on our brilliant campus, whether you’re enjoying our labs, lecture theatres, historic buildings, or green spaces, take a moment to appreciate the hard work our amazing planners do to bring these high-quality spaces to us in as sustainable a manner as possible. Finally, if you want to learn more, please do check out the information on their blog also!