Wednesday, 09 November 2022
A technician from the University of Nottingham has been recognised for his commitment to sustainability by being awarded a prestigious Green Gown Award.
Lee Hibbett is a Technician Manager in the School of Pharmacy and won the Sustainability Champion staff category in the Green Gown Awards. These annual awards recognise the exceptional sustainability initiatives being undertaken by universities and colleges across the world.
Three years ago, Lee set up the Technical Sustainability Working Group (TSWG) for the University of Nottingham. The TSWG is a group of lab technicians from across all University of Nottingham UK campuses, working to see where best practices from different departments can be rolled out to the whole University.
The TSWG has implemented a number of practical solutions to improve sustainability that are having an impact on reducing the carbon footprint of the University. They have removed water condensers from chemistry labs and replaced them with air condensers, saving over 3 million litres of water. They have also driven a project to become the first university to pilot a new solvent recycler to recycle waste acetone, saving 2,000 litres acetone a year that would otherwise go for disposal. A polystyrene recycling initiative has also been set up across the university
The group has also signed up to the Lab Efficiency Assessment Framework (LEAF) and set up a Midlands Innovation Group universities sustainability committee, with the aim of getting technicians and sustainability teams working together to share ideas.
The Green Gown judges commented: “You have gone above and beyond to not only embed sustainability into your role and team, but to ensure the good practice is spread across the University, and beyond. By taking on a secondment within the sustainability team, your technical expertise around labs and sustainability is built into decision-making and will influence many more people than if you'd solely operated within your own lab. You have shown how to take responsibility in your specific role and how you can influence the sector!”
I am delighted that Lee has received this prestigious award in recognition of his work to Champion Sustainability within our Technical staff and laboratory environments. Lee has galvanised others at the university with his dedication and innovative ideas, which is helping to drive sustainable behaviours and activity across the University.
The University of Nottingham was also highly commended in the Research with Impact - Institution category with the Trent Basin project, a housing development made up of more than 70 energy-efficient homes being built on the banks of the River Trent that forms an active energy community. The pioneering scheme enables residents to generate, store and use solar electricity and, so far, is estimated to have saved the equivalent of 34 tonnes of CO2per year and benefited at least 262 people. The University’s micro prospectus was also a finalist in the Building Back Better category.
Story credits
More information is available from Jane Icke, Media Relations Manager for the Faculty of Science at the University of Nottingham on jane.icke@nottingham.ac.uk
Notes to editors:
About the University of Nottingham
Ranked 32 in Europe and 16th in the UK by the QS World University Rankings: Europe 2024, the University of Nottingham is a founding member of the Russell Group of research-intensive universities. Studying at the University of Nottingham is a life-changing experience, and we pride ourselves on unlocking the potential of our students. We have a pioneering spirit, expressed in the vision of our founder Sir Jesse Boot, which has seen us lead the way in establishing campuses in China and Malaysia - part of a globally connected network of education, research and industrial engagement.
Nottingham was crowned Sports University of the Year by The Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide 2024 – the third time it has been given the honour since 2018 – and by the Daily Mail University Guide 2024.
The university is among the best universities in the UK for the strength of our research, positioned seventh for research power in the UK according to REF 2021. The birthplace of discoveries such as MRI and ibuprofen, our innovations transform lives and tackle global problems such as sustainable food supplies, ending modern slavery, developing greener transport, and reducing reliance on fossil fuels.
The university is a major employer and industry partner - locally and globally - and our graduates are the second most targeted by the UK's top employers, according to The Graduate Market in 2022 report by High Fliers Research.
We lead the Universities for Nottingham initiative, in partnership with Nottingham Trent University, a pioneering collaboration between the city’s two world-class institutions to improve levels of prosperity, opportunity, sustainability, health and wellbeing for residents in the city and region we are proud to call home.
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