First of all we would like to say congratulations to Lisa Blundell, from Accommodation and Commercial Services, who is the winner of the My Greenspace Refer a Friend competition.

The competition resulted in 42 successful referrals and new members to the My Greenspace community.

Thanks to everyone for getting involved – there are still prizes to be won every month so it’s never too late to get involved and earn Green Points. Join your Team on mygreenspace.teamjump.co.uk.

Fairtrade Pancake Day

We had a flipping good success at our Fairtrade Pancake Day.

We made pancakes for students, staff, and members of the public on Tuesday 1 March. Each person brought their own Fairtrade topping – including chocolate, banana, and sugar.

Colleges got involved as well, by organising their own bake sales to raise money for FairTrade and other charities. Our College Eco Reps have also been busy organising bake sales, eco markets and clothing swaps. If you want to get involved with your College Eco Society then get in touch at greenspace.students@durham.ac.uk.

Environment Varsity

Ever wondered which of our Colleges is the greenest? Back in March, Colleges went head-to-head in the Greenspace Sustainability Varsity, with each College competing in three week-long rounds focused around themes of ‘Get Involved’, ‘Energy’ and ‘Waste’. The winning College will be the first to receive the Sustainability Varsity trophy at the Greenspace Festival in June.

March out Waste

Did you know that we have a target to recycle 70 per cent of all our waste? To reach that target we are working with our contractor Biffa to make further improvements. 

We analyse our waste data to highlight areas that are preforming above and below average. We’re working with the teams in these areas to come up with solutions to increase recycling rates.

Colleges collectively produce 57 per cent of all waste at the University. In just one year the waste collected from our Colleges, weighs 933 tonnes, which is roughly the same weight as 235 elephants. Help us reduce waste and increase recycling by:

• donating unwanted items to charity
• using the correct bins
• flattening cardboard boxes, and
• arrange parcels deliveries on a particular day (this will not only reduce the amount of cardboard waste but also the carbon footprint of deliveries).

Find the college waste leader boards and more on our Sway. 

It was also Food Waste Action Week in March! Catering Teams are getting involved with the Guardians of the Grub Challenge and we’re monitoring where food waste is arising in the canteens. The Ugly Fruit Group also ran a Leftover Challenge encouraging students and staff to use up leftover food in new and exciting ways. Find out more @TheUglyFruitGroup on Facebook or Instagram.

Walking Month of May

Walking is a great way to have time to yourself and gives you more energy to do the things you enjoy in life. In the working day it can also help you to unwind and make plans. We will be working with Living Streets, a UK Charity, to promote National Walking Month of May and several activities will be taking place throughout the month such as walking challenges, pledges, and promoting local walks.

Keep an eye out for events for the National Walking Month of May! Details to be included on our walking website and our Greenspace Facebook page. In the meantime, why not take a lunchtime stroll around our Botanic Garden or a short walk from the Mountjoy Site, or take a look at local walks available on the Durham County Council website.

Hedgehog Friendly Campus

We successfully gained the Silver Accreditation from the Hedgehog Preservation Society for the Academic Year 2021/22 - an amazing achievement - especially under lockdown. We are now working on attaining the Gold award.

To achieve the Silver award, many students and staff took part in various campaigns, events, and initiatives. The Silver award was achieved by completing hedgehog-friendly activities, including conducting hedgehog surveys and taking part in the Big Hedgehog Friendly Litter Pick, which we came first in, collecting a whopping 105 bags of litter by 31 volunteers! We are now the proud owners of a hedgehog house and food for our campus hogs.

Thank you to all our volunteers, our Working Group, Student Conservation Groups, Grounds & Gardens Team, and the Energy & Sustainability Team.

Want to keep up with what the group is up to? Visit our Hedgehog Friendly University campaign Facebook page or the British Hedgehog Preservation Society's website for more details and watch out for future events to get involved with to help look after our hedgehogs and assist with our Gold accreditation.

What's coming up

To see all our upcoming events and collaborations with student environment groups, visit the Greenspace Facebook page.

We are also gearing up for our second Greenspace Festival in June 2022, check out last year’s Greenspace Festival on our website.

If you’re interested in supporting this year’s Greenspace Festival either as a volunteer, organising an event or running a stall, let us know at greenspace.students@durham.ac.uk.