Students assess Solent’s environmental impact

Geography and Environment students have been helping Southampton Solent University hit its environmental sustainability targets, while also earning some valuable experience for their CVs.

 On 17 October 2016, Solent was awarded the EcoCampus Gold award, meaning that we’re close to perfect in terms of environmental management. We’re currently working towards the Platinum award, which is the highest that can be achieved.

As part of their course, students audited Solent’s environmental impact and policies by visiting different sectors of the university to observe and comment on what we were doing well, and what we could do better.

Robert McLean, going into his third year studying BSc (Hons) Geography with Marine Studies, says: “I enjoyed observing the operations that occur behind the scenes. It was intriguing to see how different sectors of the university work together in order to obtain the highest standard available.

"This skill has given me an insight into how the auditing process works, and has opened the door for a potential career.”

There is still some work that needs to be done before we receive our EcoCampus Platinum Award, but the observations the students raised are very important for us. They help the university understand which environmental issues are more relevant from the students’ perspective, so we now know the key areas where we need to focus our efforts in preparation for the final certification audit in 2018.