Our Earth: Our Future Sixth Form Sustainability Conference
Friday 28th June 2024, 9am – 3pm
Chancellor’s Building, Keele University campus
Sir Tim Brighouse
Tim understood the fundamental importance of students experiencing learning beyond the classroom. He had the greatest respect for young people. He believed in them, optimistic that in the right conditions, all could thrive. In this final, unfinished, project he joined that with his concerns about the climate emergency and was passionate about how that context could enhance pupils’ learning experiences.
Tim’s vision was for young people aged 16-17 to be involved in an issue that was bigger than themselves. He recognised that many young people feel passionately, and are worried, about climate change
and saw that as the obvious place to start a “bottom up” movement for an enriched experience. A movement that could grow with more conferences held each year, until it built to become an entitlement for all young people.
After Tim’s passing in December 2023, it was unanimously agreed that we would continue with our plans and aim to realise Tim’s vision with these conferences happening in June 2024. We are hugely grateful for the energy and commitment of colleagues across the country making these happen. Around 2000 young people are likely to benefit from Tim’s vision this summer.
Programme
Opportunity for schools to meet and share ideas about their sustainability projects as well as meet Keele University Student Ambassadors.
9.009:50 Arrival and sign in Chancellors Building
9:5010.00 Welcome Dorothy Hodgkin Lecture Theatre
10.0010.45 Keynote Speaker Dorothy Hodgkin Lecture Theatre
11.0011.50 Seminar breakout session
Students will be given the opportunity to start to ask questions that hopefully can be answered during the day via the Slido app and in the final session of the day.
Welcome to Keele - Alanna Wheat Sustainability Engagement Officer Keele University
Welcome to the Conference - Richard Gill CEO, Arthur Terry Learning Partnership
What young people can do to get involved in moving change, activism in their daily lives – Eco Schools
Professor Zoe Robinson – Keele University
Seminar Sessions
• Green Sustainability Careers
• Action and Activism
• Smart Energy, Business and the Environment
• Fast Fashion
Earth Stories film
• Eco Poetry
• Health and the environment
• Sustainability tour
12.00 -
– Provided and will consist of Vegetarian and Vegan Options 12.4513.15
13.1513.45 Led by student leaders
13.4514.45
14.4515.00
Sarah Mills – Let’s go Zero: Climate Action Advisor
Feedback from Seminars
Q and A Panel facilitated by Adam Ball Arthur Terry School with:
1. Dawn Haywood (CEO Windsor Academy Trust)
2. Sarah Mills (Lets Go Zero)
3. Tom Bedford (Green Sustainability and Careers)
4. Alana Wheat (Sustainability Engagement Officer)
5. Charlie O’Neil (Year 12 Politics Student)
Dawn Haywood, CEO Windsor Academy Trust
Chancellor’s The Kitchen Table
Our Speakers
Zoe Robinson Professor of Sustainability in Higher Education
Zoe Robinson is a Professor of Sustainability in Higher Education and Director of the Institute for Sustainable Futures at Keele University. She also held the role of University Director of Education for Sustainability for 10 years (from 2012) with responsibility for embedding sustainability across the curriculum and student experience. Zoe is a Sustainability Scientist with 18 years of experience around sustainability transformations, working across the natural and social sciences boundaries, and with a background of working in sustainability and climate change education, community engagement and supporting Local Authorities and other organisations around climate change and energy transitions.
Learn more:
https://www.keele.ac.uk/gge/ourpeople/zoerobinson/ https://uk.linkedin.com/in/professor-zoe-robinson
Sarah Mills
Let’s go Zero: Climate Action Advisor
Having worked as a TV producer, secondary teacher, sustainability group leader, volunteer coordinator and fundraiser, Sarah is looking forward to tapping into all of this experience to help schools make the biggest possible impact on their carbon footprint in ways that make the most sense to their community.
Learn more:
https://letsgozero.org/our-team/ https://uk.linkedin.com/in/sarah-mills-a19153261
Seminars
Title
Green Sustainability Careers
Academic Lead Short Overview of session
Tom Bedford (Net Zero and Smart Energy Training Manager)
Action and Activism
Prof. Zoe Robinson (Professor of Sustainability in Higher Education, Director of the Institute for Sustainable Futures)
Smart Energy, Business and the Environment
Fast Fashion
Earth Stories film
Dr Helen Millward
Ellie-Rose / Unfolded Prof Deirdre McKay (Professor of Sustainable Development)
Earth Stories Film Festival committee –Emily Stevenson, Aalyiah GibbingsGarner, James McAteer
Politics and sustainability
Health and the environment
Phil Catney (Senior Lecturer in Politics)
This seminar dives into the exciting world of green jobs! Explore the growing field of careers focused on environmental solutions. Gain insights on the skills needed to thrive in in the 21st century. Discover how YOU can be a part of building a sustainable future and a thriving green economy. Leave the seminar equipped with resources and inspired to take action!
Think you know what activism is? Think again! There are so many ways to be an activist and be part of helping create the change you want to see in the world. This session will help you explore some of the different inspiring examples of young people driving change on climate and other issues they care about, and help you think about what you could do to help make changes you want to see whether in your school, community, or even wider!
This session will involve collaboration in a group to produce an eight to ten-minute presentation on ‘How to design sustainability for your town’. You will get support from the Keele Business School throughout the session.
We’ll introduce you to some of our ongoing research on textile microfibres as a pollutant. And we will explore the global fashion supply chain and Lifecycle Analysis, thinking about factories and human rights, and the circular economy potentials of textile and clothing waste. Our interactive activities will look at what’s in our clothes, learning to identify different kinds of composition and construction. You will leave with new ideas making clothing purchasing, care and disposal more sustainable.
Earth Stories Film Festival is an award winning, international film festival, founded by students and staff at Keele University. The film festival is aimed at young filmmakers (14-25 years old) and is a student-led initiative that provides a platform for students and young filmmakers from across the world to articulate their concerns about the climate crisis. Student swill be given the opportunity to watch some of the winning films and discuss some of the issues raised in the films.
It’s election season, and we are often told that politics is not effective, especially in achieving crucial net zero goals. This session aims to prompt students to think about the challenges involved in creating policies for environmental sustainability. We will examine what the 2024 election manifestos propose and assess their practicality, as well as the intricate trade-offs that the parties are dealing with.
Sustainability tour
Natalie WilliamsFenton (Lecturer in Adult Nursing)
Alana Wheat & Student Ambassadors (GSRA)
How does the environment affect our health and how does healthcare affect the environment?...Is the climate emergency a healthcare emergency? Come along and learn about the connections of health and the environment and the consequences of climate change on human health. You will work in teams to design a health promotion initiative and share your ideas with the group via the digital platform PADLET. Be a future agent of change for the healthcare of our future!
This is an opportunity to have a tour around Keele University and see some of the facilities on offer including a visit to the wind/solar farm.
Question and Answers Session
During
