Last update 06/09/10
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Placement
SuccessIt was the whole process that impressed me most about StudentForce’s service – from the interview process through to the graduate support and networking available – Catherine Dixon, Line Manager to Matt Maynard.
Any fears we had about who we were taking on, of what calibre the successful candidate would be and how much support they’d need, were quickly allayed; we were very happy with the tasks Matt carried out and the report he did for us has helped to progress work for the South West Climate Change Impacts Partnership even further. – Catherine Dixon, Line Manager to Matt Maynard.
I had been doing voluntary work for 6 months before I found StudentForce and since then my career and personal development has come along in leaps and bounds. It began with a 3 month placement at Wiltshire council looking at the impacts of severe weather on council services. Initially this was a daunting prospect but with the continued support available from StudentForce advisors, and feedback from within the team, the project slowly took shape.
I developed my presentation skills, improved my report writing and learned how best to interview people; the value of the experience was proven when I was successful in securing a permanent position with Wiltshire Council immediately upon finishing the project.
While the project was often challenging it was always varied, fun and interesting; as a result I think that the opportunity StudentForce offers would be difficult to beat as a first step on the career ladder and an introduction to the world of work. These 3 months have made me more employable and greatly improved my skills base: I would highly recommend StudentForce and the opportunities it offers to anyone looking to take their first step in the environmental sector.
Staff and
Student Collaboration at University of SheffieldEEK (Ethical & Environmental Knowledge) Week 2010 was a great success at the University of Sheffield. While occasionally knocked by the looming May exams, turnout was solid for the week’s events with around 300 people attending the Big Green Fair and Travel Roadshow alone. There were events with a serious message such as film showings about Peak Oil and a debate between FairTrade and the Rainforest Alliance. These allied with more light-hearted activities like bike-powered smoothie making and a giveaway of fresh rhubarb on Monday which led to a lot of students sporting them as very organic-looking umbrellas! Such resourcefulness is to be applauded!
This year’s EEK Week was on a bigger scale than ever before, thanks in large part to Degrees Cooler’s focus on bringing together students and staff towards a common goal. As Greener Living Assistant I was in a position to liaise effectively between the Ethical and Environmental student committee and the Energy and Environment Team of staff, which led to increased coordination between the two groups. The Travel Roadshow, RecFest (summer festival in halls with a recycling message) and Engineers Without Borders wind turbine (the group built an impressive five-foot wind turbine and aim to use it to generate power on campus) were all great but separate projects which, thanks to the uniting factor of Degrees Cooler, came together for the first time in EEK Week.
So, looking back, we’ve had a fun week, learned some lessons for next year, and most importantly have used EEK Week to unite a wide coalition of like-minded students and staff. I very much hope the that effects of this prove powerful and long-lasting.
Music
Festival SuccessEvery Can Counts Help Festival Goers Recycle 250, 000 Drinks Cans
Wow, what a wonderful placement; I started as a Project Officer for Alupro - Aluminium Packaging Recycling Organisation – three months ago working on the Every Can Counts programme. My role involves coordinating events to promote the drinks can recycling scheme, which kicked off at the Isle of Wight Festival 2010.
Every Can Counts aims to increase participation in drinks can recycling outside the home, whether in work places or by people ‘on-the-go’. The programme is managed by Alupro and is funded by the drinks can manufacturers (Beverage Can Makers Europe and UK Canmakers), the aluminium packaging producers, Novelis UK Ltd., Corus Steel Packaging Recycling and Waste & Resources Action Programme (WRAP). It aims to improve collection and recycling of the 42,000 tonnes of aluminium and steel drinks cans which are used outside the home every year – a major focus of the Government’s Waste Strategy (2007) and Packaging Strategy (2009).
The promotion of drinks can recycling makes environmental sense, drinks cans are 100% recyclable and recycling them saves up to 95% of the energy it takes to make both aluminium and steel from raw materials, including reducing CO2 emissions by up to 80% - every can recycled cuts the carbon footprint of the next can made. This is why Every Can Counts aims to make it possible to recycle your drinks cans whenever and wherever you are. It is helping employers and employees, to set up and run successful recycling programmes at work; more recently it has been working with councils and event organisers to provide and promote recycling on the street and at events, and my role has been to organise these events.
To effectively encourage people to recycle their cans I have had to build up an understanding into the waste and recycling industry; from visiting a high-tech Materials Recovery Facility (MRF) that separates co-mingled domestic waste, to Novelis’ used beverage can recycling plant, and smaller scale community groups and cash for cans centres. I now appreciate the key issues in increasing recycling rates and volumes, from communications to improving the collection infrastructure.
The Isle of Wight Festival was the first event in the Every Can Counts programme, which will run throughout the summer. The event involved a football related activity that gets people instantly interested, and allows us the opportunity to talk to them and raise awareness. My role was to coordinate the event from start-to-finish - for example, liaising with Biffa the waste managers of the festival, collaborating with a local island charity Haylands Farm, organising the branded giveaways and competition, as well as transport, accommodation etc... – to enable the successful promotion and collection of beverage cans.
Every Can Counts set up close to the entrance of the main arena and was an instant hit. To play, entrants swapped their empty drinks can for 4 shots on goal, with prizes given for scoring a goal, including a pair of tickets for next year’s festival! Biffa set up over 80 Every Can Counts branded can recycling bins which the charity volunteers collected and emptied into a huge skip. Working with Haylands Farm proved to be a winning combination that allowed us to communicate the ‘make your can count’ message to thousands.
The weekend was hugely successful as 3.5 tonnes of beverage cans collected over the three days. The revenue raised from the recycled drink cans will go directly to Haylands Farm, which provides support and development for adults with learning disabilities.
The next three months of my placement are going to be just as busy, with an array of events planned across the UK, including taking the goal to Bournemouth beach, Eastbourne and Devon and events at shopping centres and outdoor shows. We’re also working with the NUS Degrees Cooler programme, so talking to a number of Universities about running events with them during the next academic year. The overall aim is to make it easier for more people to do the right thing with their drink cans when they go shopping or to the beach. Full details of our other summer events can be found on our website, www.everycancounts.co.uk, on our Facebook page, or you can follow us on Twitter.
Project
Worker Profile - Environmental OfficerI joined the Estates Department in the Worcestershire Mental Health Partnership to help both the Mental Health Partnership and Primary Care Trust achieve best practice with regards to energy consumption, carbon reduction and value for money in relation to all aspects of energy, utilities, services and the environment.
It has been an exciting time to work for the NHS as society becomes aware of the links between health and carbon intensive lifestyles. I have been fortunate to have had colleagues with a wealth of experience, and been trusted with many responsibilities, giving me the opportunity to learn about energy management and increase my knowledge of environmental sustainability, as well as how the public sector operate.
The key tasks involved monitoring energy consumption and identifying anomalies at over 80 different sites, calculating the Trusts’ carbon footprint, tendering, implementing a waste recycling contract and raising awareness of the cost of energy use to staff and patients.
During the year placement, energy consumption has fallen and recycling has been introduced. I have worked with the Worcestershire County Council and the Energy Saving Trust to run awareness-raising schemes, helping staff and visitors save money on utility bills at work and home. Sustainability has become an integral part of the Trusts functioning; I wrote a Sustainable Development Action Plan which will be a key driver in ensuring the Trust reaches its sustainability targets, and plays its part as a good corporate citizen.
The project has given me an excellent insight into the public sector, as well as hands on experience of tendering, reporting and presenting. This helped me to gain a place at the University of Leeds to research Low Carbon Technologies.
NUS and NUS Services are delighted to have been awarded the tender to conduct research into education for sustainable development (ESD) by the Higher Education Academy.
NUS and NUS Services will work in partnership with StudentForce for Sustainability, and the University of Bath to conduct this work.
This is a unique opportunity to work with first-year students from all four UK member nations to understand their thoughts and attitudes to ESD and to provide senior national figures with student opinion.
Research will be conducted in two phases:
The final report will demonstrate the current state of play in ESD and likely developments over the next five years.
The project will run from July 2010 to January 2011.
For further details on this study, please contact Lizzie Bone, Environmental
Researcher at NUS Services on 01625 413269.
Link
Karl Egan Graduate Resource Manager
Bristol
Festival of NatureThe Bristol Festival of Nature came and went as quick as lightning! so I thought I would write a brief account of my experience as an exhibitor on behalf of StudentForce at this festival for the first time, hopefully encouraging some of you to attend next year and sharing what we got out of it.
So, firstly, you may be rightly wondering Why?, Why was StudentForce represented at this event? Every Sustainability Project Coordinator here at StudentForce has the opportunity to specialise in a specific subject; I am specialising in wildlife conservation and biodiversity; I studied Animal Behaviour and have maintained the wildlife conservation link in various work-experience roles I have completed and so thought this would be a good fit. StudentForce has had fewer projects in this field and I am keen to improve upon this so that we ensure we are covering the entire spectrum of the environmental leg of sustainability. 2010 is also the International Year of Biodiversity so there is no better time to concentrate on this area and incorporate wildlife conservation into the bigger picture.
We saw The Bristol Festival of Nature as a prime chance to raise our profile in this domain and the weekend did not disappoint as we had a great time chatting with the other wildlife conservation exhibitors present, including the RSPB, The Soil Association, The Woodland Trust, Wild Futures and Natural England to name but a few. StudentForce is looking forward to working with these fantastic organisations in the coming months, building stronger relationships and exciting projects in Biodiversity.
Additionally, I am ecstatic to announce that we are supporting The Lost World Project to raise awareness of the fragility and conservation needs of Mount Roraima and the Guiana Highlands of Venezuela, StudentForce is delighted to be associated with Ibex earth’s fantastic conservation efforts.
More details to follow very soon…
Watch this space!
Jenny Mace
Sustainability Project Coordinator
First ever entirely
Green Devonshire Weekly!Sam Porteous is an Environment, Health and Safety Adviser at Chatsworth Settlement Trustees. Just over half-way through his year-long placement Sam has successfully just created the first ever green-themed Devonshire Weekly Newsletter that is distributed to all the staff in each of the private estates owned by The Devonshire Group
Gloucestershire Project SuccessHi all intrepid StudentForcers! Well what a year it has been. It’s hard to believe it’s almost 12 months since I began my job search. I was nearing the end of my Climate Change MSc at the University of East Anglia and the worry of joblessness was creeping in, having had more than a few failed applications I was beginning to get a little disheartened. Then I heard about StudentForce and within 3 weeks I had a job! Since September 2009 I have been employed with Gloucestershire County Council. It has been a real pleasure working with Gloucestershire, not only are they a four star rated Authority, but their commitment and drive in tackling climate change is widely recognised and I am very proud to have worked for such a well respected Authority.
Based in Corporate Sustainability, I was employed as a Climate Change Officer – working with the Carbon Management Officer and Corporate Sustainability Manager. Initially I lead on projects around climate change adaptation, providing leadership and advice to the Council and their partners on the risks associated with a changing climate and how best to prepare to cope with the impacts of climate change and indeed extreme weather. I soon realised that in this small team, I would not only be working on adaptation but on all areas of sustainability: carbon management; writing and implementing policy documents; carrying out sustainability impact assessments etc. Six months into the job, the Carbon Management Officer left and I have been covering both roles since. This significantly increased the scope of my job and my responsibility within the team. I have been through a number of corporate training courses to enable me to do my job better including sustainability training and energy management training. I have been project managing multiple high profile projects, one of which at a regional level. Other work I have been involved in include preparations for the Carbon Reduction Commitment (CRC); ongoing implementation of our Local Authority Carbon Management Plan; Sustainable Procurement; Climate Change awareness campaign; co-ordinating a network of climate change champions; co-ordinating a local low-carbon partnership and a local Adaptation Working Group.
One of my biggest highlights was helping Gloucestershire County Council and the 6 Districts Councils meet their 2009/10 target for National Indicator 188 (climate change adaptation). Some of the work I did for the Council has been chosen by the UK Climate Impacts Partnership (UKCIP) as an example of best practice nationally.
I have been asked to stay with the Council and have happily accepted. As sustainability is such a broad issue covering so many areas, working in a two-tier authority like Gloucestershire County Council means I am able to meet and help lots of people from a range of service areas as well as from across the region and I really enjoy that. Looking forward, work in the pipeline includes helping the Authority write a new Carbon Management Plan, continuing to work with the Council and districts to achieve level 3 of NI 188 and continue to manage the regional Vantage Point project, helping Local Authorities in the South West achieve their National Indicator 186 targets. I would like to thank StudentForce for giving me this wonderful opportunity and enabling me to get my foot in the door and progress my career in sustainable development.
Project
success! - Climate Change Technical Officer I was selected to help Peterborough City Council establish the carbon emissions from the delivery of their operations, for NI 185, the Carbon Trust Programme and the upcoming CRC (Carbon Reduction Commitment). I have been involved in collating and providing data on the council’s energy consumption and calculating the carbon footprint, which has included training in energy management software.
I joined the council’s internal launch of the Carbon Trust’s Local Authority Carbon Management Programme, which is designed to help councils reduce their carbon emissions. Over the subsequent 10 months I took part in the programme as Deputy Leader, which involved monthly teleconferences with Carbon Trust Advisors, attending regional and national Carbon Trust events, attending monthly meetings with the Programme Board, and delivering several workshops and meetings for the Carbon Management Team.
Throughout the 10 month programme, I was involved in writing the council’s 5 year carbon management plan to demonstrate how the carbon reduction target would be achieved. This involved using Carbon Trust tools to identify potential carbon saving projects from across the council. Developing these projects further then required her to gain buy-in from the Carbon Management Team. This was particularly important when working on an application for a Salix loan. I also started to develop a behavioural change project to help contribute to the reductions by launching a network of Green Champions.
he project was successful because the council has been mentioned at several Carbon Trust events for its continued good performance on the programme and its carbon management newsletter. The success of the carbon management plan was recognised when it was adopted by Full Council, but overall the project’s success is seen in the raised profile of climate change issues throughout the council and my contract extension.
I am very grateful to StudentForce for helping me get my foot in the door of the climate change sector.
Adapting
to climate change is a risky business. As Norfolk’s Climate Adaptation Officer,
my work is all about making that risk manageable. Anyone who works with risk
will know that the first step in risk management is to conduct a risk
assessment. But in the unique case of climate change, this is not so straight
forward. This is because of what I call cumulative uncertainty –
uncertainties built upon foundations of uncertainty. Unmatched amongst other
risk issues, climate change suffers endemic uncertainty, from limited scientific
beginnings through to interpreting their manifestations and impacts upon yet
more uncertain systems.
Endorsed by climate change advisor to the US White House, Professor Douglas Crawford-Brown, I am author of ‘A risky business’ - the climate change risk assessment for Norfolk’s local authorities, which details a unique methodology for pragmatic engagement with the risks of climate change. In that same report, I outline the priority risks to Norfolk’s key services alongside recommendations for the next steps in responding to them. But reporting the risks of climate change is only the first step towards persuading people that we need to adapt to climate change. In accompaniment to ‘A risky business’ I have designed and delivered an internal and external communications campaign of the same name to dispel many of the myths and misconceptions surrounding adaptation.
The most prominent force in climate change adaptation in the UK is UKCIP: the UK Climate Impacts Programme. But their online BACLIAT and adaptation wizard tools – designed as a good starting point for adaptation – have been widely criticised for being excessively complicated. In response, I am developing the Climate Adaptation Tool (C.A.T.) © April 2010: the first easy-to-use practical tool designed to help organisations adapt to the effects of climate change. Made to facilitate efficient adaptive decision making and resource allocation, C.A.T. guides you through the 3 critical steps in climate change adaptation without unnecessary technical jargon – whilst retaining the rigour that such a process needs (please see picture above).
C.A.T. is currently undergoing the final stages of its development, and has already built up a great deal of interest locally, regionally and nationally. UKCIP, the Broads Authority, National Farmers Union, May Gurney, EEDA, numerous other local authorities and the national UK Climate Change Risk Assessment are all poised to test the tool. For further information about C.A.T. or about climate change risk and adaptation, please contact me.
Robert Bellamy
Waste
Project Officer SuccessWhen I graduated with my Earth and Environmental Science degree from Lancaster my general aim was to get a job where I could interact with people, get outside and make a difference for the environment. After 3 months of fruitless applications and resorting to gardening to earn some extra cash I found the StudentForce website and uploaded my CV. I got an interview with Milton Keynes Council. This was the first interview I had ever had, and I was lucky enough to get the job!
I started with the council as a Zero Waste Project Officer. The Zero Waste Project was one of 6 trailblazing projects within the UK designed to help develop best practice.
The aim was to motivate residents and businesses to reduce waste and increase recycling in an area of Milton Keynes. I developed a strategy to deliver the project aims, this involved a series of initiatives including; designing a set of publications, undertaking media interviews, setting up web groups, holding and attending meetings, giving presentations and talking face to face with residents and businesses. I also made changes to local recycling banks and bins, promoted initiatives by WRAP, second hand web sites and stores, encouraged composting, and organised an event, Zero Waste Day.
The project had the involvement of members of the public, community groups, local businesses and environmental organisations such as The Energy Saving Trust, the MK Play Association, real nappy companies, the local Community Shop and the MK Dons football club.
I produced a detailed report on the project and have provided advice and guidance to other councils wanting to do similar projects. I am currently working to gain Zero Waste Accreditation status for Milton Keynes Council based on the achievements of this project.
The variety of experience I gained within 3 months was fantastic. I felt free to get on with it and achieve as much as I could.
Another opportunity came along when MKC introduced a new food and garden waste collection.
During the summer of 2009 I recruited, trained and co-ordinated a team of 12 Recycling Advisers. The team was an effective force in increasing participation in the new food and garden waste scheme by overseeing 3 phases of bin delivery to 100, 000 households, answering peoples’ queries and encouraging reluctant residents to give it a go. The household scheme was taken on board successfully and recycling rates were increased. We then set out to implement the food and garden waste scheme to all schools and sheltered housing in Milton Keynes. This involved visits and presentations to get people on board with the scheme and liaising with the waste contractor to arrange deliveries.
The last recycling adviser left the council in November, and since then I have been appointed as Waste Reduction and Communications Officer for the Waste Services department. I manage the council’s Cash for Trash incentive scheme for households, regularly write articles for the local newspaper and magazine and I produced the quarterly newspaper wrap around. I support and give advice to the public, schools and sheltered housing, and give assemblies to school children.
I can’t believe that the simple act of uploading my CV with StudentForce has led to all of this. My 3 month placement has now lasted 16 months!
Thank you StudentForce, you have changed my life!
Rebecca Watts, Waste Project Officer, Milton Keynes Council
Investors
Education AwardThe Lincolnshire & Rutland Education Business Partnership (The EBP) aims to improve links between businesses and schools by delivering quality Work-related Learning and enterprise education. The EBP offers a wide range of enterprise education to both primary and secondary schools in the two counties by delivering activities based around the work of participating local businesses. The aim is to enhance and enrich the teaching of science, technology, engineering and mathematics in schools in Lincolnshire & Rutland.
LowC were asked by the EBP if we would like to participate in the Embedding Enterprise Curriculum Challenge to set a science challenge based around our area of expertise - renewable energy. This was seen to be a great opportunity to increase the interest of young pupils in an subject matter that is becoming increasingly important.
The challenge we set enabled the students to analyse the energy demands of their schools, assess various methods to reduce the requirement for this energy and ultimately consider if any renewable energy technologies would be a suitable investment. It was very encouraging to see that even with current curricular constraints the students and teachers alike showed an interest in the subject area and took time out to pursue this challenge.
On 18th March, The EBP held its annual awards evening at Belton Woods Hotel, near Grantham to acknowledge the businesses in our area who have gone above and beyond to offer engaging challenges or work placements for students. For our contribution to the Embedding Enterprise Challenge LowC were nominated to receive the Investors in Education award for successfully demonstrating its commitment to working in partnership with Lincolnshire and Rutland schools.
This year's ceremony saw a total of 49 businesses collecting their certificates for the outstanding work they had achieved during 2009. Many of the award winners had been nominated by local schools, other awards were presented in recognition of the work businesses or business ambassadors had carried out to work with schools to help raise aspirations and give students the opportunity to see the challenges and opportunities which they may encounter in the world of work.
We were absolutely delighted to be nominated for this award and are thrilled at the prospect of all the young students developing an interest in matters concerning renewable energy and sustainable living - long may it continue!
Nick McDowall
Education
UpdateIt has already been an exciting start to the spring for our work within the education sector.
We attended the Lincolnshire Sustainable Schools Showcase in March and were inspired by so many students showing enthusiasm and a desire to learn about the impacts they can have on changing the state of the world around them. It was also great to see so many of our Project workers representing their respective councils, businesses and organisations, and thereby spreading their skills and knowledge beyond their immediate workplace. Good stuff guys!
We managed to finish March with another great EAUC (Environmental Association for Universities and Colleges) conference. Over a week in Bangor it was amazing to see several Project Workers doing sterling work behind the scenes within the EAUC, and to be able to shout about those working within represented Colleges and Universities across the UK.
A gathering of so many experienced and enthused environmental managers and sustainability gurus of the FHE sector really testifies to the potential momentum that this ever growing and developing sector can have on a more sustainable future. StudentForce placements within Colleges and Universities have added immense capacity to ambitious but over-stretched sustainability teams. Their motivation and recent knowledge have been making them indispensible at getting messages across to both staff and students alike and their ability to take on often hectic and challenging workloads in ever changing policy contexts does them proud!
Degrees Cooler, the Defra funded project spearheaded by the NUS, has been a perfect example of this. WE were able to show off the changes in staff and student pro-environmental behaviour that StudentForce’s 10 Greener Living Assistants are consistently working on throughout their institutions. Working in partnership with People and Planet, Student Switch Off and Green Impact, the Assistants have been key in driving forward this ambitious project. So indispensible have they become that many of their managers are now instigating extensions to their contracts, with the aim of further embedding real change over time.
And finally we are able to welcome 4 new Project Workers on our College and University Sustainability Placements (CUSP), and several other graduates who will be embarking on placements with the aim of engaging and educating others of the many varied facets of sustainability. Record numbers of applicants have made the last few months both challenging for our decision making at StudentForce, and extremely testing for those trying to secure a role in the sector. We can only try to focus on the potential that such a large cohort of young, talented and inspiring individuals will have to impact on socially, economically and environmentally sustainable development.
Jo Kemp, Education Sector Coordinator
Opportunities
for ProgressAfter graduating into an economic recession with an MSc from Loughborough
University in December 2009, I found myself struggling to find any form of
professional employment. Luckily for me, I stumbled across StudentForce! I
signed up one evening, uploaded my CV to their database and the rest is history.
After showing interest in a job vacancy I was invited to interview where I
managed to secure gainful employment within a local authority. By the end of
January 2010 I had started my new job as Contract Monitoring Officer at Tendring
District Council, Essex. This job involved a large quantity of surveying and
assessment, in addition to continuous public interaction. I was employed to
ensure the Council’s contractors reached all the pre-defined sustainability
targets in place within a 3 month period; a task which I managed to have
completed in just over 2 months.
The additional time I secured permitted me the opportunity to get involved with
educating a portion of the district’s population. I decided to use my public
speaking skills to give presentations to schools round the district in an
attempt to heighten their environmental awareness whilst gaining pupil
involvement in a poster competition I orchestrated. To everyone’s surprise,
including my own, the poster competition proved to be a huge success. I received
over 250 entries from a number of schools, and
secured sponsorship from Veolia and Tendring DC to generate a prize fund for the
school the winning poster came from. In addition to this, I arranged a surplus
budget to cover the publication costs of the poster, which has enabled us to
distribute it across the district.
In addition to this, I volunteered to analyse the statistics for the Cleaner
Essex Partnership. This group launched an environmental campaign, funded by Keep
Britain Tidy, in an attempt to minimise littering around Essex. The statistical
analysis I conducted evaluated the campaigns success rate and identified a
litter reduction of 26% following the completion of the campaign.
Irrespective of the temporary nature of this position, the experience I gained
from it has helped me in securing a permanent position at another Local
Authority with a substantial pay rise. In addition to this, the confidence I
possessed from the knowledge of StudentForce’s unfaltering support took a
substantial amount of pressure off me and made the relocation extremely easy.
The job has been most enjoyable, and the additional activities I have been
involved in have made it extremely rewarding.
StudentForce provided me with the first job related to my degree after countless frustrating rejections due to lack of relevant experience. Fellow employees I’ve met during workshops share my view that our placements are an invaluable stepping stone to further careers in sustainability, all we needed was to have our qualities recognised.
After having worked in the Third Sector, moving to a Local Authority was
quite a shock to the system, but 8 months into my placement, I feel happy that I
have made some positive changes in the way the Gloucestershire County Council (GCC)
buys its goods and services:
Working with suppliers
• Participated in Defra’s Healthier Food Mark on behalf of the Council to help
develop the scheme in its pre-consultation period and gauge a baseline for GCC
food policies and practices to enable us to improve.
• In response to concerns about overfishing, I worked with the Children and
Young People’s Department (CYPD) and GCC’s contract caterers for schools,
Edwards & Ward, to ensure that all fish provided in school meals is now Marine
Stewardship Council (MSC) certified. The same company have also now committed to
providing barn eggs instead of eggs from caged hens.
• Worked with CYPD and in-house caterers, Alliance in Partnership (AiP), to
shift from caged hen to free range eggs in April of this year.
Changing processes
• Diverted all requests for new furniture purchases to our internal store of
reusable second hand furniture. Since communications have been released
Council-wide, new furniture purchases have fallen by nearly 40%. A catalogue is
now being set up to make the process more user-friendly.
• A similar system is soon to be implemented for office supplies such as ring
binders.
• Slowly but surely working towards collecting information from suppliers to
send out all purchase orders and all BACS payments receipts by e-mail rather
than by post. This is set to save the Council 1 ½ tonnes of paper annually not
to mention up to £50,000 every year.
Procurement
For the procurement of any service or goods, specifications are written to
describe particular requirements. Defra have published ‘Quick Win’
specifications for a number of product categories, as have the European Union
(Green Public Procurement – GPP). Specifications for Sustainable products that
are now being used in the Council include Euro 5 standard engines (with lower
NOx emissions) for Park & Ride buses and Forestry Stewardship Council (FSC)
accreditation for furniture suppliers. The latter is a big step towards being
able to write a Council-wide Sustainable Timber Policy.
Another effective way of imbedding sustainability into the procurement process
is by enhancing the sustainability sections in pre-qualification questionnaires
(PQQs), which are used to evaluate suppliers on the way they have run their
business to date. There is also the tender stage, in which suppliers are
assessed on how they would work with the Council to provide the goods/ services.
Examples of supplier appraisal documents that now have significant
sustainability criteria include:
• 20% sustainability weighting in the PQQ for all upcoming bus and taxi
contracts, especially for carbon management.
• 15% weighting of furniture tender on sustainable aspects such as limiting
harmful substances, packaging and non-renewable materials.
• 15% of marks given in the school meals tender for locally-sourced, sustainable
and nutritious food.
• 10% sustainability weighting in the cleaning services PQQ on criteria
including environmental management systems.
I would definitely recommend considering a post in sustainable procurement, as it is such a rapidly developing area; the European Commission have set a 50% green purchasing target to be achieved by 2010 and the UK are working towards being recognised as a leaders in sustainable procurement in the EU, as part of the UK Sustainable Procurement Action Plan. Within procurement there is the potential to improve whole processes, as opposed to working on individual or sideline campaigns. There is also the added benefit of having the opportunity to work with such a wide variety of departments and disciplines. However, working in a department whose main focus is making cost efficiency savings in response to huge Government cuts can be a real challenge… its certainly character building!
A
First Step to OpportunityOn the 12th April 2010 I am starting a new role as CSR Manager at the Danwood Group, the largest independent supplier of print solutions in Europe. I would like to take the opportunity to feedback on the crucial role that StudentForce played in my career development.
I fully understand the how hard it is to make that first step on the career ladder after leaving university. After graduating in summer 2002 it wasn’t until 2004 that I managed to land my first role in my career area of choice. That opportunity was provided by StudentForce; through whom I spent 18 months working as a Waste Minimisation Project Worker at Peterborough City Council.
After leaving PCC I returned to my home town of Lincoln and fell into a job working for Danwood. The job was completely unrelated to sustainability; however the company were experiencing a big increase in market interest in the subject. With the Environmental Manager on maternity leave, my experience with PCC meant that employees started to turn to me for assistance with customer requests relating to sustainability and CSR. I was subsequently invited to be part of a CSR board and sponsored to do a masters degree in Corporate Social Responsibility.
I have now completed the course and have a tough challenge ahead of me, but one I am relishing taking on. Priorities include establishing and meeting targets for emissions reduction and striving to continuously improve the environmental impact of the print solutions provided to our customers.
I would just like to say thank you to StudentForce for opening up an opportunity that would never have presented itself otherwise. The job market may be competitive at present, but opportunity is perhaps greater than it has ever been for ambitious young professionals with knowledge of sustainability.
| Year | Type |
| IEMA 2007 | Press release |
| Aspect 2007 | Press release |
| Telegraph 2006 | Press article |
| Times 2005 | Press article |
| Volunteers with Grand Designs 2004 | Press release |
| PECT Accreditation 2003 | Press release |
| Year |
| 2009/10 |
| 2008/09 |
| 2007/08 |