The aim of the Sustainable Futures Partnership is to work collaboratively to reduce carbon emissions across the FE estate and to prepare staff and students for a greener and sustainable future. Led by Mel Lenehan, Principal of Fircroft College, Principals from across all CWM colleges provide strategic leadership and direction.
Strategic activities span
- Formally declaring a climate emergency
- Sharing strategies and roadmaps
- Utilising opportunities to share resources/consultancy/bids
- Developing wider partnerships to help develop and support the work. This includes engagement with AoC, EAUC, ETF…
- Oversight of the three workstreams outlined below
Towards Net Zero
Lead: Olly Scholefield, Solihull College and University Centre
Purpose:
- Share best practice assessing carbon usage, working with EAUC
- Implement a consistent approach to assessing carbon usage across CWM colleges
- Pilot carbon usage assessment and report tools collaboratively as they become available.
- Develop and implement target setting for carbon reduction.
- Report collectively on progress towards carbon reduction.
- Access funding available to support colleges with carbon reduction
Learning, Curriculum, and Professional Development
Lead: Mel Lenehan, Fircroft College
Purpose:
- To support the development of staff knowledge and understanding of sustainability to enable the development of curriculum and curriculum resources on sustainability and climate action, specifically
- To promote and use current sector and non-sector training and development options for staff
- To develop a funded regional teacher training programme for 2023/24.
- To promote more extensive use of ETF resources for learners and the Carbon Literacy Project
Student Engagement and Wider Partnerships
Lead: Tom Hamilton-Dick, North Warwickshire and South Leicestershire College.
Purpose:
- To support the development of student engagement and leadership in climate action.
- To consider and develop wider partnerships outside of the FE sector to work collaboratively with.
- With support from Students Organising for Sustainability, 13 colleges are planning a climate action week in the week of 26th June 2023.
