Greenlines: Issue 37

Greenlines Issue number 37, Sept 2013

The University’s sustainability newsletter

Staying warm at Cambridge

ISBN: 2048-2442 (Online)

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Inside this issue: Staying warm at Cambridge From inside a Department Meet the Environmental Officer Living Lab Seed Award Green Impact Ethical Guide

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Over at Environment and Energy, we’ve already been feeling the chill – and with memories of a gloriously sunny summer already fast-receding, many people’s thoughts may be turning to the question of how to stay warm throughout autumn and winter, particularly those residing or working in the university’s older buildings.

Did you know that the university has drafted a thermal comfort policy? The policy states: “Human perception of a comfortable temperature is subjective. It is based on a combination of factors including; air temperature; radiant temperature; humidity; individual metabolism and clothing.”

So what does all this mean exactly?

Air temperature is pretty selfexplanatory – and with the new Green Impact thermometers it’s easy to tell when it’s getting a bit nippy. The University policy is to heat between 1921°C during the heating season, which usually starts in October and ends in April. But air temperature is only one of the things which affect overall thermal comfort – and it may not be the culprit if you’re still feeling chilly.

Even with the heating on, an office with lots of air changes may struggle to reach the desired temperature. Essentially this means that as fast as air is heated

Wear your jumper to work day held during Switch Off Week 2013

by your radiators, it is leaving the room as a result of draughts, or the frequent opening and closing of external doors.

Try to trace the source of draughts and you might find you can address the problem yourself such as by keeping doors closed or rearranging the office furniture. Note that windows can also cause localised draughts, by cooling any air which is next to them – this air then sinks to the floor and ‘slides’ across the room, creating a draught (to counteract this, radiators are often placed below windows).

Have you ever wondered why you can feel warm on a cold but sunny day?

Radiant temperature is the answer – the sun’s rays hitting your skin, making you feel warm, even if the air

temperature is low (a campfire works in the same way). Or more scientifically, a warmer body (the sun) will radiate its heat towards a cooler body (you).

Unfortunately, in many of the university’s buildings – particularly the older ones – the warmer side of this equation tends to be you, which means you end up radiating your body heat to any particularly cold surface that may be nearby (usually a window) and this can make you feel cold, even if the air temperature is warm.

So how to fight this evil trick of physics?

Firstly, invest in a good jumper. This may sound trite but it makes good sense – it’s far more straightforward to insulate your own body, than insulate the room you occupy. By covering exposed skin, the

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Greenlines Issue number 37, Sept 2013 rate at which your body radiates its heat is significantly reduced – making you feel warmer.

Secondly, if you find yourself right next to a cold window (or a particularly cold wall), see whether you could rearrange your desk or work area so that you’re further away, and out of the path of any draughts. To address the root cause of the problem, the temperature of the offending surface can be raised by insulation or secondary glazing – but try the simple solutions first.

Humidity is another factor which affects thermal comfort, but this is mainly of concern during warmer months when humid conditions make it harder for the body to evaporate sweat, thus inhibiting the body’s cooling mechanism. During the cooler months, this is unlikely to be a problem.

Finally, individual metabolism (or rather metabolic heat). Essentially this relates to the degree of activity your job requires. Those who are more physically active as part of their role will tend to

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feel warmer, compared to those who are more sedentary and perhaps stay at their desk the majority of the time. But never fear – if your job is desk-bound, you can still boost your metabolic heat by taking the stairs instead of the lift, popping across to talk to colleagues instead of phoning, and so on. Little and often is the key here.

Hopefully by using some of these tips you may be able to stay a little warmer throughout the coming months!

From inside a Department – Institute for Manufacturing On the 10th and 11th of September 2013, industrialists and academics from around the world gathered in Cripps Court, Magdalene College to engage with the challenges of industrial sustainability as the EPSRC Centre for Innovative Manufacturing in Industrial Sustainability held its second annual conference.

Over 100 delegates were in attendance and were treated to presentations from industry, professional organisations such as WRAP and IEMA, and the Centre’s researchers. Highlights included a keynote address from John

Ehrenfeld - one of the leading thinkers in sustainability and industrial ecology, talks from Toyota and M&S on their methods and achievements, and The Natural Step sharing how they try to help companies develop their strategic efforts towards sustainability.

Throughout the conference there were opportunities for delegates to engage with Centre researchers, their work being showcased in presentations, demonstrations and quick guides (short easy to digest introductions to key topics and techniques) conveying the latest research in eco-efficiency, next

generation factories and future of the industrial system.

The conference drew to a close with a look into the future of manufacturing hosted by Centre Director Steve Evans and a panel discussion including the keynote speakers, debating how progress can be accelerated. A common theme across the delegates was a deep enthusiasm for improving environmental performance in the short term whilst acknowledging the need to grapple with wider and deeper issues of industrial sustainability.

A key aim of the conference was to bring the worlds of practice and academia together in an integrated fashion to better tackle the challenge of industrial sustainability. We hope that the links formed during the conference will extend the reach of the Centre and improve the potential impact on practice.

If you’d like to know more about the research of the EPSRC Centre for Industrial Sustainability, you can visit www.industrialsustainability. org/ or contact Ian Bamford (imb31@eng.cam.ac.uk).

www.admin.cam.ac.uk/environment : environment@admin.cam.ac.uk : @CambridgeSust

Greenlines Issue number 37, Sept 2013

Meet the new Environmental Officer Name: Toby Balson Position: Environmental Officer How long have you been in this position?

3 weeks What does this position entail? Working on our Environmental Management System, and as part of the Environment Strategy Committee, and ensuring sustainability is embedded in our new capital projects.

What is your background and how did you get here? I gained an MSc degree in Sustainable Construction and worked for six years at the Building Research Establishment on sustainable building design, as well as publications and campaigns for the Energy Saving Trust.

Following that I worked for the Cambridge Programme for Sustainability Leadership, just down the road!

What are you most looking forward to getting your teeth into in the coming academic year? Finding new and better solutions to saving energy and improving environmental performance – there’s so much knowledge and experience we can tap into here at Cambridge.

What is your environment and energy pet hate? Parks covered in rubbish – use the bin people!

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Overcoming short term concerns and thinking.

Tell us one little known fact about yourself. I’m an obscure electronic musician.

Who is your inspirational figure (real or fictional)? Too many to mention – Captain Planet perhaps?!

Do you have any hobbies? Yes, I spend far too much time playing video games.

What did you want to be when you were growing up? I wanted to run a cinema.

What animal would best suit your personality? This was a tough question but thanks to an online quiz I’ve discovered I’m a cheetah, which allegedly means I’m efficient and organised – I’m taking the results with a pinch of salt.

What do you think is the biggest environmental challenge?

Living Lab Seed Award Every year, the Living Laboratory for Sustainability runs an award to engage the University in environmental practices. This year, the Living Lab presents the Seed Award!

The Living Lab Seed Award will provide seed funding for 3-4 environmental projects with a budget of £500-1,000. The winning applications will receive funding and support from the Living Lab to carry out their project proposal. Projects can range from wanting to create a garden in your Department to starting a new group or society to tackle any environmental challenges you see. Get creative!

• Have an idea for an environmental project?

• Want to address a problem at the University or in your Department?

• Want to start something new and innovative?

The first step is to create a proposal for your project and submit it no later than 20 January 2014. The top proposals will be asked to prepare a 5 minute presentation to a judging panel in mid-February. The wining proposals will receive funding, up to a maximum of £1000, and work with the Living Lab to execute their project.

For more information and an application email living.laboratory@admin.cam.ac.uk.

www.admin.cam.ac.uk/environment : environment@admin.cam.ac.uk : @CambridgeSust

Greenlines Issue number 37, Sept 2013

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Nineteen departments set to make a Green Impact Are you one of those people who get annoyed by lights left on or curtains drawn, or think more generally your department or College could be more environmental? Let us channel your frustration.

Green Impact is the scheme for those who want to act but don’t know how, and already supports many who are beavering away for environmental and wellbeing causes in various corners of the University.

We provide an online workbook containing a number of actions to be implemented in workplaces, each action helping to reduce the impact of staff and

students on the environment. All of the actions are straightforward and wellexplained, but become more challenging with progression throught the workbook.

To access the workbook you may either form a team or join a pre-existing one in your department or College. Awards are presented to all teams, with higher awards given to teams that have completed the more challenging actions.

Teams are supported by the Environment and Energy Section and can attend monthly Green Impact surgeries which are designed to help teams progress through the workbook. Members can join us for coffee and cake and share

Cambridge Ethical Guide Cambridge has been described as “the worst clone town” in Britain, but a new ethical guide produced by the Cambridge Hub tries to help us buck this trend by providing information and tips for Cambridge dwellers who want to make a positive impact on their community.

The Cambridge Hub is a student led community, working as part of the national Student Hubs network. Their mission is to help bring students that are campaigning, innovating, fund raising and volunteering all across the University together, so they can collaborate more effectively, and get more students involved in social, environmental and charitable activity.

As part of this they have put together an Ethical Guide to Cambridge to bring together information to help people to live more sustainably, and to link up the groups and initiatives working all across

ideas and questions with other teams.

The first surgery, open to everyone, will take place on 9th October at 74 Trumpington Street 1-2pm and will be centred around the topic “Green Impact: what is it and how to get started”.

After being launched mid-September, nineteen departments have already signed up to take on the challenge, helping to support the implementation of the University’s Environmental Policy by increasing environmental awareness and action at the departmental level.

To find out more come to our Green Impact surgery or email: greenimpact@admin.cam.ac.uk.

Upcoming Events

the city with each other to have more impact together. It is not an exhaustive list but just a starting point that they hope you will find helpful!

To view the 2013-2014 Ethical Guide to Cambridge visit: http://bit.ly/1bEwfcS.

NEW WEBSITE 8th Oct Our new website will be live next week, please visit and let us know what you think!

Societies Fair 8th and 9th Oct Come and find us at Societies Fair in Kelsey Kerridge on 8th and 9th October!

Green Impact workshop 9th Oct If you are interested in finding out more about Green Impact, what it is or how to get involved we are holding a workshop on *9th October* from 1-2pm at 74 Trumpington Street on “How to… get started”. Please join us for coffee, cake and a chat about Green Impact as well as a chance to quiz other teams about how they got on.

Subscription: If you’d like to receive Greenlines directly please email us on the details below www.admin.cam.ac.uk/environment : environment@admin.cam.ac.uk : @CambridgeSust