THE UNIVERSITY of EDINBURGH

Social Responsibility and Sustainability

Highlights 2009/10

We are delighted to dowhatever it is we can to

support education, access to research andaccess to medicine fordeveloping countries

– as part of our EssentialMedicines undertaking.

Jonathan R Seckl, Professor of Molecular Medicine

and Executive Dean of theCollege of Medicine and

Veterinary Medicine

page 2 The University of Edinburgh Social Responsibility and Sustainability Highlights 2009/10 www.ed.ac.uk/sustainability

In February 2010 we set out1 our aspiration to makeworld-leading contributions to understanding andaddressing global challenges such as poverty,infectious diseases, climate change, the growingdemand for energy, food and water, and the threats tothe biodiversity on which we all ultimately depend.

This goal is one to which all disciplines across theUniversity can – and are – contributing, both directlyand indirectly.

Our approach is to create the conditions wherestudents and staff are inspired and supported toengage with and contribute to social responsibility andsustainability across the University and beyond.

This review gives the highlights of our progress overthe 2009/10 academic year in implementing our SocialResponsibility and Sustainability Strategy.

We said we would:

• Lead by example, embedding our commitment tosocial responsibility and sustainability in our policies,strategies and procedures. We have alreadyintegrated ways of measuring this into the way wereview and approve all our courses, and have madesustainability central to the way we design andcommission major building projects.

• Actively support best practice, innovation andleadership in social responsibility and sustainability.We have attracted funding for novel project-baseddissertations where Masters students work withpartner organisations on social responsibility andsustainability issues.

• Recognise and communicate relevant activity bystudents, staff and alumni. The Principal’s Medalwas awarded to Ben Miller for fair tradecampaigning work while a student, and welaunched our Edinburgh Sustainability and OurEdwebsites which showcase such activity.

• Demonstrate and report our main social,environmental and economic impacts. We havedeveloped a sustainability report which will meet theinternational reporting standard of the GlobalReporting Initiative. This will be mounted on theEdinburgh Sustainability website and will beupdated continuously and captured in a summarydocument at the end of each year. This reviewhighlights several key achievements for 2009/10.

1 Social Responsibility and Sustainability Strategy 2010-20www.ed.ac.uk/sustainability/about

Introduction

The Principal’s Medal was awarded to Ben Miller

www.ed.ac.uk/sustainability The University of Edinburgh Social Responsibility and Sustainability Highlights 2009/10 page 3

Creating opportunities for all students toengage with social responsibility andsustainability

We want to create the conditions where students andstaff develop their knowledge, skills and experience toengage with and contribute to tackling globalchallenges in Scotland and worldwide.

We are doing this by making it easier and rewardingfor staff and students to engage with social responsibilityand sustainability in teaching and learning.

Highlights in 2009/10

When we review new and existing undergraduateand taught postgraduate programmes we nowconsider how sustainability, social responsibility,equality and diversity issues can enhance the studentexperience. Advice for staff on the revised TeachingProgramme Review is available from Academic Services.

Developed the MA in Sustainable Development, amulti-disciplinary honours degree on the social,political and economic consequences and prospectsfor sustainability. The programme is open forapplications for entry in 2011/12. Find out more fromthe School of Social and Political Science.

Hosted Chevening Fellows from Australia, Sri Lanka,China, Mexico, India, Poland, Indonesia, Colombia andBrazil who joined the Business School for an intensive12 week programme Finance and Investment in aLow Carbon Economy. Sponsored by the UKForeign & Commonwealth Office.

We have approved a new timetable for 2011/12,creating an Innovative Learning Week. Students willhave the opportunity to not only participate in, but alsoto help develop, a range of activities such asconferences, workshops, volunteering sessions andmore. Staff and students interested in contributingshould contact their Head of School.

Received funding to support Masters students carryout project based dissertations with partnerorganisations focussing on social responsibility andsustainability issues. Supported by the ScottishFunding Council, in partnership with the Universities ofAberdeen and Stirling. To find out more contact theInstitute for Academic Development.

Established a new first-year course – Our ChangingWorld – which was open to members of the public.Over 190,000 downloads of lecture podcasts. Seemore at www.ocw.ed.ac.uk.

Education is not something we ‘spend’our wealth on – it is itself wealth. It maymake us economically richer, but itsvalue lies also in the enrichment of thelives of those we teach, and the lives ofthose who are touched by our graduates.We have a central role in enriching livesand in building a creative andenlightened society.

Gareth Leng,Professor of Experimental Physiology

Studying

page 4 The University of Edinburgh Social Responsibility and Sustainability Highlights 2009/10 www.ed.ac.uk/sustainability

Contributing to the development of holisticsolutions

We want to understand the problems facing the planetand its people, to question accepted wisdom, tochallenge simplistic analysis and to communicate withothers. In doing so we will help develop holisticsolutions.

We are doing this by identifying areas of potentialopportunity, bringing these to the attention ofresearchers and providing the support they need.

Highlights in 2009/10

Launched the Global Health Academy to addressdisease, social inequalities in health and to translateleading scientific advances into effective interventions.Find out more at www.ed.ac.uk/global-health.

Launched the Global Development Academy to makeprofound contributions to global development that arepractical as well as intellectual. Find out more atwww.ed.ac.uk/global-development.

Marked 40 years of research and innovation withnearly 200 hundred new businesses spun out of theUniversity bringing the fruits of research to real worldapplications. Read the report at www.research-innovation.ed.ac.uk/information/Celebrating-40-years-of-innovation-at-the-University-of-Edinburgh-1969-2009.pdf.

Adopted an Essential Medicines policy to ensure newtreatments developed by the University are accessibleand affordable in less developed countries when welicense them for commercial purposes. Find out moreat www.research-innovation.ed.ac.uk/information/Essential-Medicines-Position-Statement-March2010.pdf.

Adopted UK Research Integrity Office’s Code ofPractice for Research which encourages researchersto consider the wider consequences of their work andto engage with the practical, ethical and intellectualchallenges of high quality research. Find out more atwww.research-innovation.ed.ac.uk/information/New-Code-of-Practice-for-Research.pdf.

Among the first UK universities to be awarded theHuman Resources Excellence in Research badge bythe European Commission. This recognises theUniversity’s commitment to supporting researchersdevelop their skills and their careers. Find out aboutsupport for researchers at www.ed.ac.uk/researcher-development.

This research brought together scientistsfrom very diverse backgrounds, anddoing so has given us insights into

climate change that we might otherwisenot have had. This highlights how newideas can be formed when scientistsfrom different disciplines collaborate.

Dr Guillermo Rein, School ofEngineering, on how fossils are helping

predict the effects of climate change.

Research

www.ed.ac.uk/sustainability The University of Edinburgh Social Responsibility and Sustainability Highlights 2009/10 page 5

Making positive contributions to society

We want to make a positive intellectual, educational,economic, scientific and cultural contribution to societyand to promote understanding of, and support for, theUniversity and its work.

We are doing this by encouraging and supporting theUniversity community of staff and students to playactive roles within the local community and widersociety for the mutual benefit of all.

Highlights in 2009/10

Edinburgh Beltane awarded Fellowships to threeUniversity staff to spend six months working closelywith the public. Edinburgh Beltane is a partnershipprogramme led by the University that bridges the gapbetween researchers at the cutting edge and thepeople their research will affect. Find out more about all the activities of Edinburgh Beltane atwww.edinburghbeltane.net.

Transition Edinburgh University awarded funding bythe Scottish Government’s Climate Challenge Fund tosupport staff and students reduce their lifestyle carbonfootprints. Transition Edinburgh University was initiatedby People and Planet student society. Find out more atwww.teu.org.uk.

Student City Forum brought together students fromacross Edinburgh, local councillors, MPs, MSPs andcommunity representatives to strengthen student-community relations. Contact Edinburgh UniversityStudents Association to find out morewww.eusa.ed.ac.uk.

Awarded the Frank Buttle Trust Quality Mark forCare Leavers in Higher Education, for our work toencourage and support ‘looked after’ children to applyto and successfully study at University.

University awarded funding to Edinburgh UniversityStudents Association to support student volunteeringto develop students’ skills and employability whilecontributing to the local community. Find out more atwww.eusa.ed.ac.uk/volunteering.

257 young people with little or no family experienceof higher education or who may have adverse socialand/or economic circumstances, joined the Universitywith the support of Lothian Equal Access Programmefor Schools in which the University is a partner. Find outmore about LEAPS at www.leapsonline.org.

Supported nearly 700 local state school pupilsinterested in studying Medicine, Law, VeterinaryMedicine or Architecture. Find out more aboutPathways to the Professions at www.ed.ac.uk/student-recruitment/widening-participation/pathways.

Community

We are an active member of thecommunity and through ourstudents and staff, touch manythousands of local people’s livesas an employer, neighbour,advisor and educator. Here, ayoung visitor to the EdinburghInternational Science Festivalblows into a gas analyser.

www.sciencefestival.co.uk

page 6 The University of Edinburgh Social Responsibility and Sustainability Highlights 2009/10 www.ed.ac.uk/sustainability

Engaging staff and students andshowcasing best practice

We want to develop and showcase best practice insocial responsibility and sustainability, informed by ourresearch and informing our teaching.

We are doing this by mainstreaming our socialresponsibility and sustainability objectives in ourstrategies, policies, work plans and day-to-dayactivities.

Highlights in 2009/10

The University was given a First Class award in thePeople & Planet Green League 2010, ranked 13 out of 133 for environmental policy and performance. See peopleandplanet.org/greenleague.

The University was ranked third of 28 universities andawarded Silver Standard in the Universities thatCount sustainability benchmarking programme. Find out more at www.eauc.org.uk/utc.

Gold and Silver Standard in Green Tourism BusinessScheme for 2,000 beds at Pollock Halls. [Link to follow]

Edinburgh University Students Association was namedOverall Gold winner at the NUS Sound EnvironmentalImpact Awards out of 83 entries. Find out aboutEdinburgh Sustainability Awards EUSA developed onthe back of this success at www.eusa.ed.ac.uk/campaigns/sustainabilityawards/.

Purchased six tonnes of fair trade rice from Malawisupporting nearly 70 children to attend school. Find out more at www.ed.ac.uk/fairtrade.

Campus

I wanted to help spread the word to othersthat saving energy will really make a

difference to the future of the world. I feel likeI have achieved what I set out to do and

made other students more aware that theycan make simple changes to their homes

and behaviour that makes a big difference.

Hannah Rayson, Chemistry undergraduate, volunteer with Big Green Makeover

www.ed.ac.uk/sustainability The University of Edinburgh Social Responsibility and Sustainability Highlights 2009/10 page 7

UoE Utilities Supply Company Ltd, wholly owned bythe University, generated £1.5m of savings, repayingwithin seven years the £7m loan to install threecombined heat and power plants. This reduced carbonemissions by 8,000 tonnes of CO2 equivalent each year.

Free Shop kept seven tonnes of personal belongingsleft behind by departing students out of landfill bygiving it to students and to homeless people movinginto housing. With Transition Edinburgh University andFreshStart. Watch out for Free Shop in Freshers Week.

Established Sustainability and EnvironmentAdvisory Group (Operations) to deliver operationalaspects of our sustainability action plans. Find out more at www.seagog.estates.ed.ac.uk/.

Published Climate Action Plan 2010-2020 setting outhow we plan to reduce our carbon footprint by 29% by2020. Find out more at www.ed.ac.uk/sustainability.

Introduced a requirement for all major constructionand refurbishment projects to include asustainability strategy and to meet environmentalstandards higher than legal requirements. Find outmore at www.ed.ac.uk/estates/design-guidelines.

Established GreenIT Working Group to developproposals to reduce the carbon footprint of ICTequipment. Staff and students can see more athttps://www.wiki.ed.ac.uk/x/tAIiBg.

Produced new guidance on recycling and safedisposal of waste – from office clear outs to labwaste. Launched book reuse and recyclingscheme, keeping 6,500 books out of landfill. In partnership with READ International and Better WorldBooks. Read the guidance and download resources atwww.ed.ac.uk/recycling.

A 1960s teaching building in GeorgeSquare has been given a new leaseof life as the Business School. Theproject achieved an Excellent awardunder BREEAM environmentalaccreditation scheme.

page 8 The University of Edinburgh Social Responsibility and Sustainability Highlights 2009/10 www.ed.ac.uk/sustainability

Our Social Responsibility and Sustainability Strategy2010-2020 sets out our aspirations, our direction andour goals for 2020.

One of our priorities is to firmly embed the objectivesset out in the Strategy within the University’sprocesses. Until then the Sustainability andEnvironmental Advisory Group (SEAG) will:

• Develop annual implementation plans to be takenforward with colleagues across the University

• Under the guidance of the Central ManagementGroup incorporate the Strategy into the annualplanning and resource process

• Receive reports from Colleges and support units ontheir activities relating to social responsibility andsustainability

• Report progress annually to Central ManagementGroup and to Court, the University’s governing body.

Contacts

Professor Mary BownesVice Principal – External EngagementT: +44 (0)131 650 5369E:mary.bownes@ed.ac.uk

David SomervellSustainability AdviserT: +44 (0)131 650 2073E: david.somervell@ed.ac.uk

Find out more at www.ed.ac.uk/sustainability.

From Strategy to Results

Site visit to solar installation atnearby Lister Housing Co-op.

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