Sustainability and Climate Change
The climate crisis means that individuals and institutions need to act now to limit global warming and reduce the impact of the biggest threat our society faces in climate change.
There are two key elements to our Sustainability Strategy at BHASVIC:
- BHASVIC aims to be a Net Zero organisation by 2030
- We will educate our students so they are Carbon Literate citizens
In July 2022, BHASVIC won the inaugural Sixth Form College Association Award for Sustainability as recognition of our work in this area.
In January 2023, in conjunction with FE Sussex, BHASVIC won the NOUS Group AOC Beacon Award for Education for Sustainable Development.
- Carbon Reduction
BHASVIC has pledged to become NetZero by 2030 in line with the aspirations of Brighton and Hove City Council. We have calculated our 2019 Carbon Footprint with the help of the Carbon Trust and the report can be viewed here:
BHASVIC Carbon Footprint Calculation
We will publish our Carbon Footprint data biennially and will publish our 2022-23 data during the 2023-4 Academic Year.
Our journey towards being a Net Zero organisation is set out in this report:
BHASVIC NetZero 2030 Action Plan
We are now completing Heat Pump feasibility surveys for our buildings as we look to replace gas boilers from 2026. As the National Grid will not be fully decarbonised by 2030 we will still generate an estimated 200 tonnes of C02 annually. We are working with our students and other stakeholder groups to begin to discuss how we might best offset our emissions to meet our NetZero ambition by 2030.
The FE Climate Roadmap is a key document in helping us to navigate our sustainability journey. In October 2020 we jointly pledged with Brighton’s two other colleges, Brighton Met and Varndean to adopt the FE Climate Action Roadmap and become leading institutions by 2023. The full story regarding this collaborative venture can be seen here.
BHASVIC’s progress against the FE Climate Action Roadmap can be viewed below:
BHASVIC Progress towards FE Climate Action Roadmap
As can be seen in the above document, we completed 28 out of 31 targets on the original roadmap and can therefore say we made it to being a ‘leading’ institution by 2023 – an aim we set out to achieve back in 2020. The Roadmap has been updated in Autumn 2024 with new targets added and we now have 6 targets that we are working to achieve (as set out in the document linked above).
- Carbon Literacy
From: BHASVIC was one of the first colleges to offer students a stand-alone Carbon Literacy qualification (in partnership with the CarbonLiteracy.com). By July 2022 over 500 students at BHASVIC have completed a level 3 qualification in Carbon Literacy.
BHASVIC was one of the first colleges to offer students a stand-alone Carbon Literacy qualification (in partnership with the CarbonLiteracy.com). By July 2024 nearly 1,000 students in total at BHASVIC have completed a level 3 qualification in Carbon Literacy.
All colleges in Sussex under the banner of FE Sussex successfully bid for funds for Greener Sussex which is a collaborative project funded by the DfE Skills Development Fund to improve Green industry, technology and skills locally. It is a response to calls from the Parliamentary Business, Education and Industrial Strategy committee (BEIS) to incorporate climate change education into formal education and skills policy.
BHASVIC led the Carbon Literacy project within this bid providing an umbrella strand for the other green-related collaborative projects (including Electric Vehicles, Alternative Energy and Decarbonisation). The Carbon Literacy work across Sussex builds the foundations for individuals to understand the science behind climate change and the need for sustainability to complement their courses, learning and skills development. All colleges in Sussex are part of this collaborative work which comprises:-
- Carbon Literacy Qualification – A short L3 course developed in partnership with The Carbon Literacy Project which raises awareness and gives the tools and an important platform for student voice and action.
- Embedding Carbon Literacy – Training and supporting tutors to develop meaningful ways to incorporate Carbon Literacy and develop accompanying resources for existing courses across a range of subject areas.
- Masterclasses – Opportunities for students and tutors across a range of subject areas to experience workshops led by professionals working in the green industries or sustainability or research sectors.
FE Sussex colleges have agreed to fund the continuation of this work into 2022-23.
Every year we build on previous work to become a Greener organisation. We will report progress against future targets to cut waste and meet our 2030 Net Zero ambitions here.
The Association of Colleges Green College Commitment sets out the critical role of colleges in achieving net zero and biodiversity ambitions.
We have links with the following
