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LSE's first Annual Sustainability Report was launched on 22 May. Featuring all things green from 2012-13, it charts the School's progress in environmental performance, including its achievement of 66 per cent recycling, re-use and composting.

The report also highlights initiatives like the newly installed bike maintenance stands and water-efficient vacuum flush toilets, and outlines plans for the future, including the eco-friendly centre buildings redevelopment.

Although the School has publicly reported on its environmental performance in the Annual Accounts since 2008, this is the first standalone sustainability report approved by Council. To read the full report, click here.
 

Staff and students got involved and found out more about the School's sustainability projects. There was a host of activities, including a bike maintenance workshop, rides in a solar-powered Sinclair C5 car, an opportunity to taste some LSE honey and a display of a morning's waste on Houghton Street. Find out more about Green Week here.
 

Whilst students have been as busy as bees revising and sitting exams, the LSE bees have been foraging for pollen in the urban environment.

Our bees have dodged monsoon-like conditions to fill the Connaught House hives with glistening (and pretty heavy) honey. Meanwhile, the queen in one of the two Passfield Hall beehives was replaced - the previous one was killed in a bee mutiny - and the hive is now thriving again.

The picture to the left shows Maddie Appleton holding natural cone-shaped honeycomb - a 'freestyle' form that bees use in the wild instead of the flat panels usually seen in beehives.
 

LSE at national EAUC conference

The Sustainability Team has been busy, not only implementing sustainability strategy across the School but sharing best practice and learning more about the realities of recycling.

For more about the visit, read LSE Sustainability Officer Elena Rivilla-Lutterkort's blog post on the conference here.

Tour of PwC's most sustainable building in London

The tour of PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC)'s 7 More London building was part of an LSE Sustainability Workshop held at the Architecture Foundation. Delegates heard how PwC was putting sustainability at the heart of the organisation before exploring ideas of how to reduce the School's carbon footprint. Results of the workshop will inform the development of the Estates sustainability strategy.
 

A fascinating tour took in the sights, sounds and - yes - smells of how recyclables are processed into raw materials to be used in new products; how organic matter is composted in giant tunnels; and how non-recyclables are burned to generate enough electricity to power 72,000 homes without releasing toxic emissions. To find out more, read Jon Emmett's blog post on the visit here.
 

Reflections on sustainability from Elena Rivilla Lutterkort

"One of the more charming facts about being the Waste and Procurement Sustainability Officer at LSE is that random objects appear on my desk overnight. These come from all over campus, where staff find them and pass them on to me to recycle, reuse and, in some cases, dispose of responsibly.

"When I started at LSE in February, the area around my desk was surrounded with boxes of wine which had been discovered in a closed room and were no longer drinkable. It seemed a shame that such large quantities of wine had to be poured down the drain.

"After some investigation I came across the Foraged Book Project and artist James Wood. James was keen to take the wine off our hands and use it in his ink-making workshop. The glass bottles would also be used in the construction of a clay oven he was planning to build.

"The hardest part was finding a way of getting the wine to James. Luckily our computer recycling company, CDL, stepped in to save the day. Based in the same area, they agreed to transport the boxes of wine during their next LSE pick up, which they said was "one of the oddest requests we've had." The wine made it safely to the Foraged Book Project and is now ink.

 The big picture

If you have any items that are too big, too heavy or you no longer need, then why not donate them to the LSE ReLove scheme?

As we approach the end of term, all students in halls of residences will be packing up and moving out. Each LSE-run hall has a ReLove collection room - ask the front of house manager for details. ReLove saves valuable items from ending up in landfill, provides a cheap source of items for new students and raises money for local charities. All items are accepted from fridges to clothes to stationery.  

LSE's annual Celebration of Sustainability was held on 22 May to recognise staff and students for their involvement in sustainability projects at LSE this year.

Over 70 staff and students celebrated in style in the splendid Shaw Library, with School Secretary Susan Scholefield hosting the event. While huge congratulations go to all who took part, Rosebery Hall achieved the coveted Green Impact Platinum Award, as the School's highest scoring team. The award plaques were made from floorboards reclaimed from construction of the Saw Swee Hock Student Centre.

Dave Scott, Maths Departmental Manager (currently on sabbatical) also gave a fascinating talk on his sustainable beer brewing project. Dave discussed the challenges and costs for an organisation to properly go green and linked this to the outstanding work LSE staff and students have done. There was an opportunity to taste some of Dave's delectable beer at the end of the awards ceremony which was followed by a green themed quiz.

Five Special Awards were also presented at the event. This year Passfield Hall and Residential Services won for their engagement ideas; Andra Fry from the Library and Dan Reeves from the Estates Division were awarded for their contribution to sustainability; and Justine Rose (pictured left) from LSE Advancement was named this year's Environmental Hero.

For more details on the awards, click here.
 

Rosa Gil receives the Student Switch-Off award from Susan Scholefield at LSE's Celebration of Sustainability

Congratulations to Carr Saunders hall of residence, which has won the NUS Student Switch-Off Competition for the third year running!

Student Switch-Off challenges students living in residences to be the most energy-efficient hall in the School. It is a national campaign taking place in 53 universities across the UK, aiming to harness "student silliness to take simple steps to save energy".

LSE has participated in the scheme since it began in 2008-09. Since then, £13,700 has been saved across LSE's halls. That's the equivalent to 5,351,719 cups of tea!

  Advice