Green Impact
We are delighted to share that our Green Impact team has been awarded the Gold Award for Environmental Sustainability this year.
Green Impact is an award-winning programme that breaks down the often complex world of sustainability into practical steps that staff and students can take to improve sustainable practice within their building, department or college. By taking part in Green Impact, we can support the University’s Environmental Sustainability Strategy with headline targets of net zero carbon and biodiversity net gain by 2035.
Themes for Green Impact actions are: Biodiversity, Carbon, Custom, Labs, Energy, Engagement, First five steps, Projects, Resource Use, Stakeholders, Sustainable Food, Sustainable Purchasing, Travel, and Waste Management. This year the School of Archaeology Green Impact Team (led by Corrie Hyland, DPhil Archaeological Science) focused on Sustainable Travel, Sustainable Food and Biodiversity as our three termly themes.
Furthermore, within our School, several of our laboratory teams have received LEAF (Laboratory Efficiency Assessment Framework) Awards, with our Radiocarbon and Stable Isotope labs both receiving Gold!
This Sustainable Labs programme specifically focuses on energy reduction and sustainability in labs.
The School of Archaeology is actively re-evaluating its environmental impact to improve the sustainability of our offices, laboratories, and research. In alignment with the University of Oxford’s Sustainability Strategy, the RLAHA (Research Laboratory of Art History and Archaeology) labs have an engaged team of students, technicians, staff members and researchers involved in the University’s Green Impact Scheme. Individual research laboratories are also working toward accreditation in the LEAF (Laboratory Efficiency Assessment Framework) program with a focus on improving the sustainability of our laboratories.
Work in 2024
- RLAHA Green Impact Scheme working toward Gold Award Level - submitted the report on 22 May 2024
- Radiocarbon Lab and Stable Isotope Lab are working toward Gold LEAF Level - submitted the report on 17 May 2024
- Archaeobotany Lab and ancient DNA Lab are working toward Bronze LEAF Level - submitted the report on 17 May 2024
Ongoing Projects:
Reduction of laboratory waste through new recycling initiatives (gloves, cleaned plastics, aluminium foil).
Wildflower Garden planted in spring 2023, supported by The Good Gardener Campaign.
Monitoring energy consumption of laboratory equipment with actions taken to reduce energy consumption through reduction and replacement.
We now have bicycle pumps and repair kits in each reception to help encourage our community to cycle to work.
Catering for events at the School:
All our catered events are vegetarian as standard. We highly recommend Waste2Taste whom we have worked with on several occasions and always been delighted by their food. We also enjoy working with Taylors and highly recommend their vegetarian samosas! We try to work with independent providers where possible.
We now offer oat milk as a milk alternative for two of our coffee mornings.
Useful links:
https://sustainability.admin.ox.ac.uk/green-impact#collapse3310256
https://sustainability.admin.ox.ac.uk/labs
https://sustainability.admin.ox.ac.uk/good-gardener”
Contact:
If you have ideas about how to improve the School's sustainability or how to help us achieve our goals, please get in touch with Corrie Hyland.
Events:
RLAHA Plant Repotting event
Come assist in the re-potting of our office plants and bring your own washed take-away containers for cuttings! The School of Archaeology Green Impact Team has teamed up with Ashleigh to provide some much-needed care to the Mezzanine plants. Thursday, March 14th, 2024, starting around 10:30 am in the Mezzanine, Dyson Perrins Building.
Green Commute Coffee
The Green Impact Team are planning an upcoming event on February 20th 10:30 am in the SPR1 coffee room. Our “Green Commute Coffee” morning will feature baked goods alongside helpful information on sustainable methods of travel within and beyond Oxford. This event will support cyclists with information on quiet and safe commuting routes, University discounts for essential bike equipment, bike doctor schedules, and mentorship on cycling with child passengers. If motorized transport is your preference, there will also be information on student bus pass discounts and voi e-scooter safety training events. Please join us on Tuesday, February 20th in SPR 1 to talk about how we can support your sustainable travel in Oxford!
Sustainable Shared Lunch - Share good food and engage in discussion on how we can make the School of Archaeology more sustainable in how we manage food! Come with your ideas, past experiences, and questions as we discuss prioritizing plant-based food, reducing food waste, food packaging and more. All while sharing delicious dishes we’ve made! Thursday, 23 November, SPR1 meeting room, 13:00 – 14:00 (following the Martin Aitken Seminar).
