Green Gown Award Winners Announced

Universities and Colleges are Creating Greener Buildings, and Responding Positively to Environmental and Social Issues

16 universities and colleges are winners or highly commended for the prestigious 2007-8 Green Gown Awards. These recognise innovative actions in eight categories – Colleges and Smaller Institutions; Continuous Improvement; Courses; Energy and Water Efficiency; Residences; Social Responsibility; Student Initiatives; and Sustainable Construction.

The Awards are organised – in collaboration with AUDE, BUFDG, EAUC, UUK and other sector associations - by the Higher Education Environmental Performance Improvement (HEEPI) project, whose Co-Director, Professor Peter James, commented that:

“Universities and colleges are under unprecedented pressure to demonstrate environmental and social responsibility. This is a key feature of a positive reputation amongst staff and students, and several schemes now compare performance. The sector must also respond to demanding new regulations such as the Carbon Reduction Commitment and Display Energy Certificates.

This year’s Awards demonstrate that many institutions are responding well, and highlight many innovations to create greater environmental awareness amongst students, and the communities which they and staff live within. The Awards also show that many universities are building impressive track records of continuous improvement of performance, and demonstrating a commitment to greener buildings.”

The Awards were presented by James Strawbridge from BBC 2’s ‘It’s Not Easy Being Green’ at the EAUC Annual Conference on April 1st at the University of Exeter.

Past winning and highly commended entries to the Sustainable Construction category of the Awards are also featured in two new publications on High Performance Buildings in Further and Higher Education. Click here to view them.

Full List of Winners & Highly Commended:

Colleges and Smaller Institutions

Winner: Lancaster and Morecambe College
Highly Commended: John Wheatley College
Highly Commended: University of Cumbria

Continuous Improvement

Winner (projects): Sheffield Hallam University
Winner (whole institution): University of Gloucestershire
Highly Commended (projects): University of Birmingham

Courses

Winner: Bedford College
Highly Commended: Somerset College of Arts and Technology
Highly Commended: University of Manchester
Highly Commended: University of Gloucestershire

Energy and Water Efficiency

Winner: University of Dundee
Highly Commended: Swansea Metropolitan University

Residences

Winner: University of Manchester

Social Responsibility

Winner: London College of Fashion, University of the Arts
Highly Commended: University of Bedfordshire

Student Initiatives

Winner: Sustainable Living Action Group, Durham University
Highly Commended: Ethical Investment Campaign, University of St Andrews

Sustainable Construction

Winner: Somerset College of Arts and Technology
Highly Commended: University of Surrey