We have a Environmental and Sustainability Group here at Open SU, made up of staff and students with a passion for promoting sustainability on campus and among our wider student population. The team promoted sustainability in a variety of ways during our recent Welcome Week – find out what they got up to.
Introduction
On 26 September this year, I had the absolute privilege of attending the Welcome Fair in my role as Open SU Faculty Rep for WELS and Open SU Sustainability Ambassador.
The event was attended by over 280 people, including students and their families. Many of the students attending were unaware of the work going on for sustainability on campus, and so it was a wonderful opportunity to talk with fellow students about our work on Hedgehog Friendly Campus and our prickly friend Merlin (the rehabilitated hedgehog released onto our grounds!).
My favourite place on campus is the garden between the Hub (our canteen) and the Horlock building, which has been left to encourage wildlife and includes a very large bug hotel.
Students were also intrigued to know about our Newt Wildlife Kerbs that protect these tiny amphibians from being washed away in the rain.
Please enjoy the following stories of all the ways we promoted sustainability to our students this Welcome Week.
Charon
Faculty Representative for WELS
Can I really grow my own veg?
As a keen amateur gardener and an Open SU volunteer, I had the absolute pleasure of hosting an online talk all about gardening in a sustainable way.
I was able to help people see that gardens don't need to be big, and they certainly don't need to be neat and tidy – in fact, sometimes the messier the better for biodiversity!
There was a fantastic audience – many of whom had some superb questions, testing my knowledge. I love finding out new facts, so I will happily come back next year and share what I have found out.
Steph
Open SU Sustainability Volunteer
Vegan Club (online session, stall and raffle)
The Vegan Club had an exciting Welcome Week with a stall at the Welcome Fair at the Open University’s Milton Keynes campus, and an online talk by animal rights advocate Sasha Jolliffe Yasawi.
Joining me for the Vegan Club stall was club member Nora, who baked the most fantastic carrot cake, proving (pun intended?) that you don’t need eggs to be a terrific baker. We ran a raffle on the day, between cake sales, focussing on ethical and sustainable prizes such as vegan sweets (still super tasty without the gelatine!), oat milk powder from Overherd (no need to milk a mother cow for this one), and sustainable toilet paper from Naked Paper – made from recycled cardboard with a lower carbon footprint than traditional bleached white toilet paper. Funds raised went to Nowzad Animal Rescue, a charity saving and rehabilitating animals in Afghanistan and Ukraine.
We were grateful to speak to many people curious about veganism, the obvious benefits to animals and the environment, and many vegan students, volunteers and staff!
Our online session welcomed Sasha Jolliffe Yasawi. Sasha is a vegan animal rights advocate, and political candidate with the Animal Welfare Party. He is also a student himself, studying a MSc in Psychology at Bournemouth University.
He has organised grass roots events locally in Bournemouth, and delivered passionate speeches to over 1,000 people at Vegan Camp Out about animal rights and social justice, which are deeply linked.
Sasha spoke about how his beliefs were formed and what drove the change in him to become vegan, and how experiences through his life cultivated a desire for changing the world for the better. We seemed to run out of time very quickly with Sasha and had some great audience interaction, with questions and support for Sasha’s principles.
It was fantastic to see such a vibrant Betty Boothroyd Library for the Welcome Fair, and so many interesting events from other sustainability-focused Open SU societies and groups. We can’t wait to organise our next Welcome Week event!
Simon
Vegan Club Lead and Sustainability Volunteer
OU Environmental Society stall and tours with Ancient Woodlands UK
As chair of the OU Environmental Sustainability Society (OUESS) I was delighted to return to the campus to run our stall at Welcome Fair, alongside Harrison from the OUESS committee.
We also hosted OU graduate Lucy Grabe-Watson to lead two rounds of a campus tree tour. As founder of the campaign group Ancient Woodlands UK, Lucy shared her knowledge of ancient trees and careers in conservation as we led groups of students around some beautiful trees on campus, including the famous mulberry by the Hub and a gorgeous yew in the grounds of the medieval St Michael's Church.
It was perfect weather for the relaxed walks, which provided a great opportunity to experience some of the nature on campus. As well as the trees and wildflowers, we saw bees, crows and a pair of buzzards flying around!
Back at the library, the OUESS stall had a very different energy with so many students passing by! While it was very busy at times, Harrison and I both had a great time speaking to so many students about their studies and interests in the environment and sustainability.
We ran a free raffle for those who joined the society or attended one of the walks – two lucky students left the fair with a bundle of gardening supplies for one and some sustainable stationery for the other!
Leila
OU Sustainability Society Chair
People’s Emergency Briefing
I teamed up with OUESS committee member Harrison again, alongside staff members from the OU's Sustainability Office, to host an online screening of the People's Emergency Briefing for staff and students.
This film presents experts' breakdowns of different facets of the global climate and nature crisis, how it has and will impact communities across the UK, and what action must be taken by the UK government.
I had not seen the film before our screening and was blown away by how effectively and engagingly the evidence was presented, and the feeling of hope I was left with that these crises can be mitigated and adapted to if enough of us act and pressure the government to respond to them with the urgency required.
Over 100 students and staff attended, with many contributions to the Q&A and chat, leading to a wide-ranging post-screening discussion, covering all kinds of topics from refill stores to sustainable finance.
It was also an opportunity to discuss what students want to see the OU doing – overall it seemed that students want more transparency and communication from the OU about its current emissions (including indirectly through banking) and its plans to reach Net Zero CO2 emissions.
We hope to provide further opportunities for students to attend online screenings of the film. If you can't wait to watch it, you can also find a local in-person screening on the PEB screening map.
Leila
OU Sustainability Society Chair
How Bad Are Bananas
The Environmental and Sustainability Society was very busy this Welcome Week and also ran one of our favourite games, ‘How Bad are Bananas?’.
This is a great game based on the book How Bad are Bananas? by Mike Berners-Lee. For each round we present two paired items and asked our attendees to guess at their comparative carbon footprints!
We talked about everything from oat milk lattes to new-build homes, and train trips to watching TV. There were also the obligatory comparisons involving bananas themselves!
It was a very popular event, with over 40 attendees guessing which item was worse for the environment and discussing the different reasons that they might impact the environment. It was great to see people so engaged with climate issues, and there were some great discussions about where carbon emissions come from and how we can all reduce our emissions.
Our chair, Leila, and deputy chair, Jessica, are both trained in running the game and do so regularly, so if you missed out during Welcome Week there will be plenty more opportunities to attend! If you’d like to join our mailing list or the society (we are free to join!) to hear about the next time we run the game, you can find all our links at https://linktr.ee/OUESSociety.
Jessica Undy-Jamison
OU Sustainability Society Deputy Chair
Staff and sustainability at the Welcome Fair
Open SU staff organised the Welcome Fair with sustainability firmly in mind, and are keen to improve this further in future.
What we did:
- Offered all plant-based snacks and lunches with recyclable packaging (that we properly disposed of)
- Avoided excessive ‘freebies’ that often end up in landfill. Our goody bags (made from recycled cotton) held recycled stationery and compostable notepads
- We reuse where we can, so we avoided buying unnecessary items that would end up being thrown away
- Stalls were held by the Sustainability Society and Vegan Club and we organised nature-related tours
- Stalls are only held by Open SU volunteers, so there were no unethical commercial providers
- Next year we're hoping to look more at freebies, waste and reducing our printing.
What did students think?
In our Welcome Week evaluation survey, 45% of respondents responded that attending Welcome Week events enhanced their awareness of how the Student Union prioritises sustainability at events (and 13% said they already knew about this, based on 73 responses).
Fighting fast fashion at Welcome Fair
Open SU President, Scarlet, and Deputy President, Kirsten, started their terms full of ideas for sustainability initiatives, one of which was hosting a 'Swap Shop' on campus. Happily, the OU already has a Swap Shop on campus, and they agreed to have a stall at our Welcome Fair to promote what they do and find homes for their items.
A new addition organised by Scarlet was a clothing swap to encourage students to embrace second-hand shopping over buying new garments. Armed with a clothes rail and clothing donations, Scarlet set up our clothing Swap Shop at the Fair, which was a big success! Stationery, books, toys, gifts and other items were also available for swapping.
According to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals website, the fashion industry contributes 8-10% of global greenhouse gas emissions. This is an area of sustainable development we would like to share with our students to help shape more sustainable habits. More advice from the UN includes:
- Reduce your consumption – consider if you really need that new item of clothing (saving money too).
- Shop at charity and vintage shops.
- Reduce water use by washing clothes when they really need to be washed (not just after one wear).
- Donate unwanted clothes – avoid adding to landfill.
- Share this advice with friends and family.
These are some simple changes we can all make that will add up to a big difference.
Ciara
Sustainability Project Officer, Open SU
Our next Welcome Week is coming soon!
Our next online Welcome Week is taking place from Saturday 30 January to Sunday 7 February 2027, and we hope to see you there! Keep an eye on our socials and our website for updates.