Sustainability and Biodiversity

Darwin College Green Week started in 2021, with the aim of engaging all members of college in sustainability. This years’ Green Week took place from the 25th April; events included a student led workshop on identifying ‘greenwashing’ (where organisations invest in marketing or promotion to appear sustainable or ethical, rather than investing in actually being these things), gardening, a charity Boat Club Ergathon, kayak trips to Paradise Nature Reserve, an evening of Vegan fine dining with Darwin Kitchens and two themed formals (for DarWild and Project Second Life). The previous year included a talk series, Reforest Tea stand, launching of our RE.USE reusable takeaway boxes and sustainable beers at Darbar. As well as this annual week which concentrates the college’s focus on green issues, we have initiatives running throughout the year. I would like to spotlight two of them here:

Darwild Project

In the Spring of this year, enthusiastic Darwin students from the Conservation Leadership MPhil initiated a plan: we wanted to use our experiences to monitor wildlife the College’s gardens with motion activated cameras.

The DarWild Project was born! Perhaps we would capture a fox? Or some candid photos of our resident heron? Even within the first few camera checks, we had the excitement of a hedgehog enjoying the student vegetable garden! Hedgehogs are now on the UK Red List and it was wonderful to see it thriving. With some expert positioning of cameras, we were delighted and surprised to record an otter! As the terribly kept ‘secret news’ spread around college, we have used our project to raise awareness for conservation efforts supporting local wildlife.

We organised a well-attended charity hedgehog formal for Green Week, complete with hedgehog pinecones and hedgehog cheeseboards. For World Otter Day on the 25th May, we raised awareness of our sighting with a ‘name the otter’ competition on social media – the prize being a RSPB Otter soft-toy. The name voted by the Darwin community is Pebbles! An appropriately cute and scientific name as otters are known to hold and roll pebbles. Alongside our wildlife cameras we hope to monitor and support bats and birds too, supported by some of the money raised by the Darwin College Giving Day ‘Green Darwin’ fund. swifts, wagtails, starlings, tawny owls and kingfishers have been identified as bird species that we could support.

Project Second Life:

Though the garden is a significant attribute to the Darwin experience, our commitment to sustainability stretches beyond our biodiversity projects. Last year, two ambitious students launched Project Second Life at our college. The key idea is to bridge the gap between students moving out and arriving, to allow more previously used items to be rehomed and reused and redirected from landfill. This is achieved with designated collection days, where donations are received and stored over the summer, followed by trash-to-treasure sales treasure sales into the Darwin calendar and share our project blueprint with other colleges. By sharing the blueprint, other colleges can read about lessons learnt and Darwin’s solutions to common problems like storage.

Both projects are student led, visible and fun, sending a strong message about Darwin’s culture.

Sustainable Impact:

Understanding the impact of these projects, and capturing the efforts of staff, students and Fellows is not only important to give due recognition but also for governance. This year, the first Darwin Departmental Sustainable Impact Report was collated to do just this with nine College departments contributing reflections on how Darwin can run on a more sustainable basis. The report covered a breadth of actions, from best practices in offices, to supporting PhD research, and to strategic net zero planning. This cross-college engagement is also reflected in our College Green Impact Award success and our annual Green Week. The Green Impact Awards are run each year by the University’s Sustainability Team, with a workbook where evidence can be submitted to score points, and this year Darwin College achieved Platinum, the highest award possible. In previous years, the college has also received special commendations: Catering Manager Ivan Higney for his commitment to sustainability and for the Darwin Community Fridge, for reducing food waste and tackling food poverty.

I hope that this brief introduction to the student and staff-led initiatives happening at Darwin, supported by donors and alumni, convinces you of the on-going commitment of the Darwin community to sustainability.

If you have any ideas of how the Darwin community can further its efforts towards sustainability, please email alumni@darwin.cam. ac.uk and we will forward your feedback.