Behaviour Change

Valentine’s Day is a time for love, romance, and celebrating relationships, but it’s also an opportunity to make more sustainable choices that minimise our environmental impact. From gifts to decorations to dining out, there are many ways to embrace sustainability while still showing affection for loved ones. Here’s how you can celebrate a greener Valentine’s Day this year: Choose Eco-Friendly Gifts One of the most common ways people celebrate Valentine’s Day is through gift giving. But not all gifts are created equal when it comes to sustainability. Instead of opting for mass produced items that may end up as waste,…

January marks the global Veganuary campaign, a month long initiative encouraging people to embrace a plant based lifestyle for the benefit of their health, animals, and, most importantly, the planet. The University of Reading has stepped up its sustainability game, making it easier than ever for students and staff to participate in this movement while contributing to a greener future. Why Veganuary Matters? A plant-based diet is one of the most effective ways to reduce your environmental footprint. Studies show that switching to vegan meals can significantly lower greenhouse gas emissions, conserve water, and reduce deforestation. By choosing plant-based options,…

We celebrated sustainability at our Green Festival from 19-21 with a series of different events, workshops and drop in sessions. Over 500 staff and students attended throughout the festival, which is an amazing turnout. Thank you to everyone for giving up their time to show their commitment to sustainability and to all the event organisers for their enthusiasm. It’s difficult to pick out some highlights, but our team really enjoyed: The Introduction to Carbon Literacy workshop with Jen Gale from Sustainable (ish). This session was informative, impactful and inspiring. Jen illustrated brilliantly the scale of the climate change challenge, but…

The University of Reading has used the Doing UoR Bit platform for a number of years, allowing staff to take simple actions to reduce their impact on the environment and be rewarded. The platform has been a successful programme, providing many people with new and different ideas of ways they can be more sustainable and helping the University to succeed with its sustainability ambitions to embed greener behaviour across our staff community. As the University approaches its centenary and we move towards being within 5 years of becoming a Net Zero institution it is vital to raise our ambitions and…

This year’s Green Festival was held from 14-16 November and it was packed schedule of events which attracted a range of people across our University Community. The Sustainability Team would like to extend their thanks to the following people and teams who we worked closely with to deliver this great programme of events: Reading Students Union, Careers, Dominque Davies, Dylan Parkes, Reading Buses, Leonie Fisher, Bethany Brown, Jamie Robertson, Hedgehog Society, RECC, Citizens Advice, Water Aid, Community team, Students Advice Service, cycling team, Chaplaincy, UPP, MERL, Student Comms, Digital Engagement Team, Reading Students Union communications team and the University Internal…

It’s Green Festival 2023 – the University of Reading’s annual sustainability celebration. This year the festival will be held on 14-16 November and we have an action packed schedule, which really does include something for everyone. Highlights include: Combat fast fashion with our clothes swap Become informed about the impact of our consumer habits on the Amazon rainforest Take part in our Big Discussion about Climate Justice Show off in our sustainable fashion show Join in with our eco poetry workshop Take action for our local environment by taking part in our litter picks Learn how to save money by…