Seven staff members have been recruited to undertake additional duties alongside their roles as part of a pilot project with the Climate Action Team. The University is taking a whole-institution response to the climate emergency as represented by the 11 Climate Action Framework Principles which includes a vast range of focus areas and actions targeting all aspects of university life.
Taking part in this pilot are the Faculty of Engineering & Design and the Department of Life Sciences with one Climate Advocate recruited for each department to embed this whole-institution response. Acting as satellite members of the Climate Action Team, the advocates will support and lead embedding our whole-institution approach to climate action in their department, working across the four work themes of education, research, footprint and partnerships​. Work includes developing department action plans, reporting progress and leading department engagement and communications.
Alongside their day-to-day roles, Climate Advocates are recruited with 100 hours workload allocation per year for 3-year appointments.
Sandhya Moise, Climate Advocate in the Department of Chemical Engineering, said "I'm thrilled to start in my role as a Climate Advocate and to be able to work on something that I am very passionate (and anxious) about as part of my everyday job. It's inspiring to witness that our University and the Faculty of Engineering & Design are leading by example, driving real change to combat one of our world's most pressing challenges. In just a couple of months in the role, I've found incredible support and allyship with the Climate Action Team, my fellow Climate Advocates, and the Chemical Engineering department, inspiring me to strive for meaningful impact together."
Peter Phelps, Climate Action Project Lead, said "We know that the majority of our staff want to see and support significant action from the University in response to the climate crisis, and we know that individuals too need additional support and guidance to implement action and changes to current behaviours, operations, procedures, policies and practices. With this new network of Climate Advocates, we are empowering a select group of staff to provide coherent links that will provide more of that support and to enable more significant and urgent action to be taken."