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During Sustainability Week, we will be hosting a wide range of activities, events and presentations to highlight the risks associated with climate change and other major environmental challenges. We will also be showcasing our operational responses to these challenges and selected research from across our University.
In the run-up to COP26 (the UN Climate Change Conference UK 2021), we are inviting all staff and students to participate in Sustainability Week and to host events or activities exploring how we can respond, individually and collectively, to current and emerging environmental challenges.
Please contact sustainability@qmul.ac.uk with any questions about Sustainability Week.
Programme of events
Throughout the Week
- Art Installation: OCA RED: Living Beyond the End of the World
- Art installation and video projection by Takumã Kuikuro, Gringo Cardia, and Paul Heritage which will become part of the official “green zone” at COP26
- All week, 10am-4pm, Room G.34, Arts One Building, Mile End Campus
- Art Installation: Natural Future Museums
- What would it mean to confer museum status on existing Indigenous lands that play a key role in climate action? Art installation and video projection exploring the indigenous, communal world of the Brazilian Amazon by Takumã Kuikuro and Thiago Jesus from the team at People's Palace Projects which will become part of the official “green zone” at COP26
- All week, 10am-4pm in the Mathematical Sciences Building Foyer, Mile End Campus
- One Planet Plate- How Green is Your Meal?
- Head to The Curve between 18 October and 26 November to sample the sustainable ‘One Planet Plate’ options available each week to lower your carbon footprint and learn about eating sustainably. This event is part of Queen Mary's participation in the SU-EATABLE LIFE project.
- All week- 8am-7:30pm, The Curve Restaurant, Mile End Campus
- International Business and Sustainability Essay Contest
- Take part in the School of Business and Management's essay contest, open to students from all courses designed to channel the initiative and creativity of the University’s students in exploring the relationship between international business and the promotion of a sustainable planet. The essay theme is: 'What is the relationship between business operations and environmental sustainability?'. Prizes are available to the best entries including a £100 book voucher and certificates. Please refer to QMplus for further details.
- Entries must be received via QMplus by 23:59 on Tuesday 19 October 2021
- Opening soon- Zero Waste Shop on Mile End Campus
- A new retail store is due to open it’s doors in January 2022 offering a wide range from pasta, rice and grains to cleaning products, beauty essentials, all the way to lifestyle products, all with no or limited packaging. Just bring or purchase your container, weigh up your product and pay via our designated Zero Waste Shop app. Sustainability is key in this concept store even in our Deli Section. From vegan snacks to salads, everything is packaged in recyclable materials. The new store will be located in the old Book Shop near the Student Union Hub. Keep your eyes peeled for more information coming soon.
Monday 18 October
- Sustainability Week 2021 Opening Ceremony (4pm-4.45pm)
- To launch our Sustainability Week, Dr Philip Tamuno, Head of Sustainability and esteemed guests will be talking you through our events for the week and how we can all make a difference in combatting climate change.
- Speakers will include;
- Dr Philippa Lloyd- Vice Principal Policy and Strategic Partnerships
- Climate Crime and Justice- Dr Thomas MacManus, Acting Director of the International State Crime Initiative
- Climate Change and Water Resources- Dr Kate Heppell, Professor of Physical Geography
- People's Palace Projects Events- Professor Paul Heritage
- The Octagon, Queens' Building, Mile End Campus & streaming online
- Registration
- Marking the Impact of the Pandemic: Tree Planting
- As part of a series of activities across Tower Hamlets to mark the local impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, we will be planting fruit trees at the Charterhouse Square, Whitechapel and Mile End campuses alongside a time for reflection, remembering and thanking all those affected during the past 18 months.
- Please join us for the planting events;
- Charterhouse Square- meet 9:55am at the central lawn (15mins)
- Whitechapel- meet 11:25am outside Floyer House (15mins)
- Mile End- meet 2pm at the Green Mary Garden (situated behind village shop)
Tuesday 19 October
- Research Showcase: Sustainable Materials for Energy Storage Devices
- Join Dr Ana Sobrido, Reader in Sustainable Energy Materials to learn how Queen Mary research is turning paper waste into batteries. Attendees will be able to witness the steps involved in turning lignin, a form of biomass waste into electrodes for edox flow batteries, used in renwable energy storage
- Lab 143, First Floor, School of Engineering and Materials Science
- Tours last 30 minutes, booking slots available 10am-12pm & 2pm-4pm
- Registration
- Physics and Astronomy Society: Climate change, International development, and Renewable Energy Talk
- Join students from the PsiStar Society and Professor Alan Drew from the School of Physical and Chemical Sciences for a talk on Indonesia's approach to a 'green energy revolution' and related social, political and financial considerations. You'll be able to hear about Professor Drew's research and have the opportunity to ask questions.
- Please contact the Physics and Astronomy Society if you'd like to attend or register here
Wednesday 20 October
- Campus Biodiversity Volunteering
- Join the sustainability team to help enhance our campus green spaces
- 11am–1pm- meet at the Green Mary Garden, Mile End Campus (behind Village Shop- building 52 on campus map).
- Registration
- Industry Spotlight Series: Sustainability
- The School of Business and Management welcome students from the school to this virtual careers session with professionals in the sustainability sector. The speakers will provide an insight into their roles, how they got there and answer any questions that you may have.
- 4–5pm taking place virtually
- SBM students will have received a calendar invite for the session, please follow the link provided
- Equity and Sustainable Healthcare: A Panel Discussion
- The Community Based Medical Education (CBME) team will be hosting a Virtual panel discussion on 'Equity and Sustainable Healthcare'. Join the group to discuss a collaborative vision for the sustainable provision of fairer environments, community initiatives and supportive endeavours to deliver sustainable healthcare.
- 4–5pm taking place virtually via Zoom
- Registration
- Film screening of Yamiyhex: As Mulheres Espírito + Q&A
- Preview screening of Yãmiyhex (women-spirit) plus a Q&A session with Paul Heritage (Queen Mary University of London); Lucia Sá (University of Manchester) and Sueli Maxakali (Yãmiyhex Indigenous film-maker) ahead of the 1st Brazil Indigenous Film Festival UK
- 6-8pm at the Hitchcock Cinema, Arts One, Mile End Campus
- Limited space, please email contact@peoplespalace.org.uk if you'd like to attend
Thursday 21 October
- Campus Foraging Walk
- Our campuses are home to a range of edible plants, berries and herbs. Join Queen Mary's Grounds and Gardens Supervisor Dimi to for a foraging tour of campus.
- 12-1pm- meet at the Green Mary Garden, Mile End Campus (behind Village Shop- building 52 on campus map).
- Registration
- Embedding Sustainability in the Curriculum Workshop
- This workshop offers an introduction to ways in which sustainability can be integrated into the curriculum which is open to staff and students. Queen Mary’s Sustainability Action Plan includes the aim to ‘Embed sustainable development and good environmental management into our curriculum’; therefore, the workshop will enable you to explore the relevance of sustainability to your own disciplinary area. You will also have the opportunity to explore examples of ways of including sustainability within curricula and to generate, share and discuss ideas for integrating sustainability within your own course.
- 1–2:30pm, taking place online
- Book via cpdbookings.qmul.ac.uk search for ‘QMAEL12’ (please create a cpd account to book if you don't have one already)
- Canal Clean-Up
- Help us to keep the Regent's Canal alongside campus clean and support local wildlife. All equipment provided including nets, gloves and litter pickers.
- 1–3pm – meet outside the Students' Union Hub at 1pm
- Registration
- The Role of Women in Managing Climate Change
- The Energy & Climate Change Institute, Queen Mary, University of London and Clifford Chance are delighted to invite you to the Annual Lecture on Climate Change. We will hear from our keynote speaker, Emma Howard Boyd, Chair, Environment Agency, with a follow-up discussion with Claire Perry O’Neill, Managing Director for Climate and Energy at the World Business Council for Sustainable Development, as we discuss the key themes and developments shaping the area, with a special focus on the role of women as instigators of change, and the disproportionate impact of climate change on women. With COP26 around the corner, now is the perfect opportunity to help shape the conversation. The session will be introduced by Clare Burgess, Partner and ESG Board Member at Clifford Chance, and will finish with the opportunity to pose your questions to the panel.
- 5:30–7:30pm – Clifford Chance, Canary Wharf and streaming online
- Registration
Friday 22 October
- Sustainability Week 2021 Closing Ceremony (3pm-3.45pm)
- To close Sustainability Week this event will include;
- Opening comments- Dr Philippa Lloyd
- Highlights of Sustainability Week and how Queen Mary will make a difference in the future- Dr Philip Tamuno
- The announcement of the International Business and Sustainabiliy Essay Content winners- Dr Fernando Barrio
- Panel discussion + Q&A
- The Octagon, Queens' Building, Mile End Campus & streaming online
- Registration
- To close Sustainability Week this event will include;
- 1st Brazil Indigenous Film Festival UK
- In the lead-up to the UN Climate Summit, COP26, People’s Palace Projects, Queen Mary University of London and The University of Manchester, in partnership with the ICA and APIB, present 12 productions by Indigenous filmmakers from Brazil, home to the world’s largest remaining rainforest. The three-day festival features shorts films, documentaries and animations that raise Indigenous voices. The programme celebrates their rituals and heritage and asserts their rights to their lands and to cultural expression, which have been brazenly dismantled and vilified under Brazil’s current government.
- Begins 6:15pm, Institute of Contemporary Arts
- Tickets and trailer
