Creating lifelong influencers
Our students
Our students are influencers and ambassadors of change, who will have the biggest impact on the industry. We strive to bring sustainability and the climate crisis into students’ experience at UCEM, both within and alongside their programme.
It is important to us that our students have ample opportunity to champion, critique, and advocate for positive change here at UCEM, here are a few examples of this:
Student Officers for Sustainability
Advocating for change
Here at UCEM we have two Student Officers for Sustainability to champion the student voice and encourage students to engage with sustainability. Our Student Officers are supported by staff to collaborate and lead on issues related to sustainability and social responsibility.
Our Student Officers for Sustainability for 2023/24:
Fortunate Mukombo
BSc Building Surveying
Donna Modesté
BSc Quantity Surveying
Students can connect with our Student Officers via the Sustainability Forum, Sustainability WhatsApp Group or Sustainability LinkedIn Group. Alternatively, email sustainability@ucem.ac.uk.
The Officers are supported by Jessica Gordon-Calvert, UCEM’s sustainability education & engagement officer.
Student initiatives
Providing opportunities to connect and inspire
New for 2022/23, we introduced an initiatives schedule which focuses on a different topic every month. In collaboration with our Student Officers we have made enhancements to the schedule for 2023/24.
Students can get involved in campaigns, events and initiatives covering a range of sustainability themes and are encouraged to share their experiences, discuss ideas, and engage in debate about sustainability and the climate crisis.
| Month | Topic |
| September | Student Officers for Sustainability and Responsible Futures |
| October | Climate and Social Action Week (16-20)
Student voice opportunities
|
| November/December | COP28 |
| January | Perspectives on the climate emergency |
| February | Student thoughts on sustainability |
| March | Sustainability at UCEM |
| April | Climate and Social Action Week (22-26) |
| May | Alumni stories |
| June | World Environment Day |
| July | A year of sustainability at UCEM |
Climate and social action weeks
UCEM hosted its first ever Go Green Week in April 2023 – co-created with our Student Officers – a dedicated week of activities and information about sustainability. For 2023/24 we have renamed it ‘Climate and Social Action Week’ and included two into our schedule for the year.
We will seek to use these weeks to bring forward topics from both the environmental and social agendas. If you would like to get involved in our Climate and Social Action Weeks or any of our sustainability initiatives, email sustainability@ucem.ac.uk
Responsible futures
UCEM is delighted to have been awarded the Responsible Futures accreditation for the third time in June 2022, which is valid for two years until Summer 2024. The university became the first alternative provider to be awarded back in 2018, after a two-day audit carried out by UCEM students who had been trained by Students Organising for Sustainability.
We also become Host Partners for 2020/21, sharing good practice and supporting other Responsible Futures partnerships.
For 2023/24 we have a Responsible Futures Working Group to support our accreditation aims. If you’re a current student and would like to get involved, email sustainability@ucem.ac.uk.
Student voice
Embedding the student voice in our sustainability work
Students have multiple opportunities to feedback about their experiences of sustainability at UCEM including SOS-UK’s Skills Survey, internal experience surveys, via our Student Officers for Sustainability and the sustainability forum on the VLE.
The findings from the student and alumni surveys are used to inform sustainability activities and initiatives at UCEM.
Key stats from Skills Survey 2023-24
Think that universities and colleges should promote sustainable development
Agree that university courses should develop students’ social and environmental skills
would choose to take a £1000 salary cut to work for a company with a strong environmental and social record
Key stats from alumni survey
Alumni shared their thoughts in UCEM’s first alumni sustainability survey in summer 2022. Of 2017-2022 graduates:
think that sustainable development is a moderate to high priority for UCEM
think that social responsibility is a moderate to high priority for UCEM
reported that sustainable development issues were covered in depth (occasionally or frequently) on their course
Case studies
Sustainability and climate action comes in all shapes and sizes. UCEM has been capturing alumni stories to demonstrate the breadth and depth of sustainability from their experiences as a student and into their roles in the industry.