Category Archives: Energy

An Urgent Call to Action

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The planet we live on has undergone rapid environmental change in recent decades and there is not one single country that has not experienced the consequences of this change.  Whilst there are a range of factors that will contribute to climate changes, the increase of around 1.0°C above pre-industrial levels is specifically attributable to the activity of human beings. 

Since the late 19th century, sea levels have risen by around 20cms with a further rise of at least 30cms by 2100 anticipated.  Total global emissions of CO2 would need to be reduced in the region of 40-45% by 2030 in order to realistically achieve net 0% in 2050.  Even then, this would only limit the rise to an increase of 1.5°C.

Accessible and affordable technological solutions will be required to enable nations to shed their reliance on the unsustainable forms of energy production that they have grown accustomed to using.  This is not a bleak statement of failure though; this is a matter of fact that has driven huge collaborative activity across countries and institutions worldwide.

The Paris Agreement is an example of a significant landmark treaty intended to combat climate change and to focus the actions and financial commitment needed to bring about a sustainable and low carbon future.  However, only 30% of the reduction in emissions needed to keep the world below 2.0°C are addressed by the Agreement.

"Before It Disappears" by Adel Van Der Merwe

Illustration Created By: Adél Ribeiro @adelsdesignstudio adel@adelsds.co.za

At our university, we have recognised that we can take a more proactive approach and contribute to the reduction and eventual reversal of climate change.  Collaborating with other universities and public bodies will also amplify the impact of our changing behaviours and accelerate the efforts we are all making.

Specifically, we are now procuring electricity from four separate offshore wind farms across the UK that will power our main teaching campus and our sports centre in the North of England.  We have also taken advantage of a long-term agreement with the power providers, ensuring that we capture the best possible price stability in an uncertain economy.  This show of commitment also supports those energy providers and helps solidify their viability as a growing contributor to the global energy market.

As well as supporting this sector with our procurement decisions, we will devote our resources to facilitating the additional human capital that is needed for success.  Just in the global energy sector alone, there is expected to be around 18 million new jobs created by 2030 that will be directly dedicated to the development and production of sustainable energy.  We will support that sector by continuing to train highly skilled students in our university that will go on to take up these jobs. 

Global Goal 13

Global Goal 13

Being mindful of this will help up to achieve Global Goal number 13 – which requires us to actively focus our efforts to confront the reality that this is a changing world with a changing environment.

Climate related hazards are estimated to have claimed over 1.3 million lives in the period 1998 – 2017.  There is simply no justifiable position that we can take that does not compel us to take significant and immediate action to address this.

We can endeavour to be a low carbon business, promote the use of sustainable energy sources and commit to work with suppliers that share this approach.  Our targets to help us to meet this goal will require further cooperation with like-minded organisation but will include;

  • Strengthening our resilience and ability to adapt to climate related hazards
  • Improving educational awareness of climate change and impact mitigation
  • Integrating climate change measures into polices, strategies and planning
  • Raising our capacity to plan for climate change and seek to improve the effectiveness of early warning mechanisms
  • Focusing on the needs of groups who are dis-proportionally more harshly impacted by climate change, such as the young, women and socially marginalised communities

If you wish to learn more about climate action, energy production and the university’s wider activities that are being introduced in order to address our environmental impact, please get in touch.

Further information on the impact of climate change and the efforts being taken to mitigate it can be found here;

https://www.un.org/en/sections/issues-depth/climate-change

http://www.climateaction.org/

https://www.unenvironment.org/explore-topics/energy/what-we-do/renewable-energy

Further information about the UN Global Goals can be found here;

https://www.globalgoals.org

Energy, Efficiency and Economy

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At York St John University we often pride ourselves on the picturesque and historic buildings that make up our campus in the North of England.  Our main teaching site is a patchwork quilt of the old and the new.  Our buildings date as far back as the 1800s right through to those that were constructed in the early 21st century.  One of the more notable of our buildings is St Mary’s House – originally a Victorian work house now repurposed and converted into student accommodation.

Restrictions necessarily encountered when working on a property of its age mean that there is the potential for large sums of money to be exhausted through its upkeep and ongoing development.  Managing and maintaining listed buildings such as St Mary’s is an ever-present challenge and fitting out the rooms to meet the needs of a modern student population has called for fresh thinking and a new approach.

The in-house Estates Management team have been working tirelessly this year to modernise the building interior – using their own expertise to mitigate our reliance on external contractors wherever possible.  As a result they have been able to both effectively manage costs whilst also significantly improving the overall energy efficiency of the building. 

At the same time they have also successfully made it a much more attractive and enjoyable living environment.  Improvements during the most recent wave of refurbishments focused on the building’s fabric values, its structural materials and with the employment of highly specified heating control systems.

The feedback we have received from the suppliers of our environmental controls has been overwhelmingly positive.  They have been vocal with us, saying repeatedly that York St John have stood out among their clients in that we are the only ones really pushing the envelope – in terms of maximising energy savings and creating bespoke algorithms that are challenging their own standard approach.

So long as renewable energy suppliers seek to cover their initial development costs, buying renewable energy itself will come at a premium price.  Buying green energy alone will not yet be a sufficient substitute for overall energy efficiency.  Seizing opportunities to reduce overall energy usage and eliminating energy wastage wherever possible will reduce our costs and our environmental impact.

St Mary's

St Mary’s House, York

In addition, overall ventilation has been considerably improved in this building and communal areas have been increased.  However, despite the fact that the external windows are still yet to be replaced, the overall improvements to date are contributing to a net reduction of around 50% in the energy consumption and associated carbon emissions of this property.  This work is all in addition to the facilities and shared spaces being dramatically upgraded from their previous standard.

Global Goal 7

Global Goal 7

Energy efficiency and an awareness of both the environmental and commercial costs of our consumption will particularly help us meet Global Goal number 7 – which asks us to address the way we use energy. Seeking to take advantage of new energy solutions quickly will also help us to counter the negative impact of climate change.  Our targets to help us meet this goal include;

  • Utilise modern energy sources and strive to make them more accessible
  • Double the efficiency of our energy usage
  • Promote research into technologies and investments in clean energy production
  • Increase the percentage of renewable energy we consume

There is no silver bullet or single action that will resolve all of these challenges at once. Instead it will require our ongoing resolve and diligence in order to ensure we remain aware of our collective responsibilities.

If you wish to learn more about energy procurement and the university’s wider activities that are being introduced in order to manage our energy efficiency, please get in touch.

Further information about York St John’s Directorate of Estate management and Development can be found here;

https://www.yorksj.ac.uk/estate-management-and-development

Further information about the UN Global Goals can be found here;

https://www.globalgoals.org