Giving graduates the skills to improve environmental performance in their future workplaces

1. Giving graduates the skills to improve environmental performance in their future workplaces Dr Zoe Robinson Senior Lecturer in Environmental Science Keele University

2. Workshop structure Why teach ‘greening business’ to any undergraduate? What should we teach in a greening business curriculum? Evaluation of experiences at Keele Examples of available teaching materials and activities Feedback on resources

3. Aims of a ‘greening business’ curriculum Help students gain the knowledge, understanding and practical skills to help drive environmental and sustainability improvements in their future (or current) workplace Help businesses adopt more sustainable practices Make students more aware of employability-sustainability links

4. The broader context Increasing pressure from government and consumers for all business to address sustainability responsibilities Environmental legislation Reduce costs Clients’ demands Applicable to all industries and therefore all students Growing job market

5. Greening Business at Keele Level 1 module, available to all L1 students ‘Greening Business: Employability and Sustainability’ Developed with environmental professionals – development and delivery Module content Why green? Motivations and barriers Basic sustainability concepts Basic environmental auditing training

6. Who chose it?

8. Benefits: Changes in individual behaviour 40% of students said that their own environmental behaviour had changed as a result of the module Increased environmental awareness

11. Greening Business Resources Information slides Classroom activities Question bank (and answers) Project ideas

12. Structure

14. Greening Business: An online teaching resource Session 5: Utilities management – energy and water

15. How to use the teaching slides These slides are not intended to form a complete lecture on the session topic. These resources are designed to suggest a framework to help tutors develop their own lecture material The resource slides comprise where appropriate; key points, case studies, images, references and further resources and suggested class activities. There are limited case studies included. Students can develop their own portfolio of case studies as part of coursework activities These resources may be used for educational purposes only, for other uses please contact the author at: z.p.robinson@keele.ac.uk

19. Have a look through the slide sets. What do you think of them?

20. Classroom activities In class discursive activities In class quantitative activities Homework research activities for later discussion Practical activities and applications

21. Activity 1: Energy savings Your organisation has decreased its grid electricity use from 13,043,000 kWh in 2003 to 12,987,000 kWh in 2008. At an average cost of £0.10 p/kWh what are the financial savings in 2008 compared to 2003? 1 kWh grid electricity = 0.537 kg CO2 What are the CO2 savings in 2008 compared to 2003?

22. Activity 1: Energy savings (Answers) Your organisation has decreased its grid electricity use from 13,043,000 kWh in 2003 to 12,987,000 kWh in 2008. At an average cost of £0.10 p/kWh what are the financial savings in 2008 compared to 2003? 13,043,000 - 12,987,000 = 56,000 kWh saving 56,000 kWh x £0.10 = £5,600 2) 1 kWh grid electricity = 0.537 kg CO2 What are the CO2 savings in 2008 compared to 2003? 56,000 kWh x 0.537 kg = 30,072 kg (30 t) CO2

23. Activity 5: Rainwater harvesting case studies Look at a range of case studies at: http://www.rainharvesting.co.uk/pages/case_studs/cs_studs_lst1.html Make a table summarising the use, annual rainfall, roof area, rainwater collection yield, capital cost Calculate the annual savings (based on water rates of: £1.4 per m3) How long will the financial payback time of the system be?

25. Activity 5: Rainwater harvesting (Answers)

26. Activity 2: Energy awareness campaign You are heading up a student-led energy awareness campaign at your institution In groups, outline how you will encourage staff and students to reduce their energy through your campaign

27. Activity 3: Generating your own energy In groups, research a type of renewable energy source choosing from the following: Solar (thermal and photovoltaic) Wind Hydro Biomass Geothermal Outline the advantages and disadvantages of the renewable energy source What is the potential for this energy source at the institution at which you are studying? As a class, compare and contrast your findings of different renewable energy sources and their applications

28. Activity 4: Energy audit In groups, carry out an energy audit or baseline environmental review of the building in which you work/study List five strategies that can be put in place to improve the energy criteria in the building What are the approximate costs and payback periods of these measures?

29. Activity 6: Water audit In groups, carry out a water audit or baseline environmental review of the building in which you work/study List five strategies that can be put in place to improve the water criteria in the building What are the approximate costs and payback periods of these measures?

30. Other examples of activities in the online resource Calculation of CO2 equivalents Research of case studies of good and bad practices Research certification schemes Evaluate LCA reports

31. Have a look through the example activities for the Energy and Water session. Comments?

32. Question banks Provided as Word file – ease of amendment Answers provided in a password protected file Structure out-of-class revision and additional research Way of addressing other material that haven’t included explicitly in taught content

33. Example question bank Generic questions and case study based Investigation of CSR reports Students see real example of what companies are doing and how using it to their advantage Skills – scanning for information

34. Have a look through the example question bank for the Motivations for ‘greening’ session. Comments?

35. Group project ideas Longer term projects Centered around improvements on the University campus Project briefs provided Write report and present to class as a poster presentation Report writing and visual/oral communication skills etc. Group work template

36. Suggested topics: Sustainable campus and corporate cars Building environmental review and action plan Office environmental review and action plan Recycling audit Cycle campaign Green transport strategy Water management plan Electrical appliance plan Green purchasing policies – cleaning products Carbon footprints of field courses

37. Have a look through the example group project ideas. Comments?

38. Summary of benefits of a greening business module Benefits to students, staff, institutions, industry, wider society Benefit to students from all disciplines Enhances understanding of climate change/ sustainability to own lives Provides sustainability education to the non-normally environmentally engaged Increased environmental awareness leading to positive changes in individual behaviour Enhanced employment prospects and awareness of sustainability-employment opportunities Development of generic employability skills Campus-curriculum links and opportunities to drive institutional change

39. What ‘sustainability skills’ Environmental and sustainability awareness Sustainability concepts and tools Auditing existing environmental practices

40. Acknowledgements Funding from the UK Higher Education Academy Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences (GEES) subject centre and Education for Sustainable Development project The Keele University students who took part in this project