Lowering Carbon in RAG week

Last week was Brighton SU's Raise and Give Week, and it saw a student take on a rather daunting challenge... an 18km cycle trip to Uni! Kate Glover was raising money for Dog's Trust and is also a keen environmentalist. during the days cycling about she managed to save 3 kg of carbon!

She also shot this video that gives a great cyclist eyes view of the trip from Hampden Park, just outside Eastbourne, to the Hastings Campus of the University of Brighton.  

Great effort Kate, good way to raise money, lower carbon and show a great cycle trip!!

If anyone else has some videos of different trips by bike we would love to see them, send us a link to cchange@brighton.ac.uk.

Does it take less carbon to buy a DVD, go to rent a physical DVD (6 mile round-trip for me), or stream it on an XBox?

So the question above was sent in via Facebook from a student and it got me thinking so I have done a bit of research and thought I'd write some of it and some thoughts down:

Now this first thing that this is actually quite a complex question. in terms of carbon implications there are many levels at which this could take... Do we look at the simple means of energy used for playing a DVD over streaming online?, Do we add the carbon for the car trip (or is it a different form of travel)?, Do we add the embedded carbon for the DVD, Xbox or even the mode of transport? As you can see not that simple!!

Therefore it is very difficult to come up with a definitive answer on the exact question but we can say some things about the different ways which you can get and watch films.

Here is some of what I have found out:

Lets start with shopping: Online VS Physical Shopping

The first question we could ask is what is better for the environment buying products online or popping into town to pick them up? my searches kept stumbling back to an article from AskPablo which is a website where Pablo Paster tries to answer questions similar to that posed in this blog. One such question came up on online verses in person shopping, the blog quite clearly states that "The lesson in all of this is that mail order is more efficient than driving your personal vehicle (unless it’s a bike)".

Therefore we would say that buying a DVD online and having it sent to you would use less carbon, if you are using a personal vehicle to travel to pick up the film.


Streaming VS Sending in the Post

With more services offering DVDs through the post and streaming online there have been a number of writings on the issue of which is greener/environmentally friendly. This question has be raised in relation to Netflix, where it has been calculated that the to send out the fist Billion DVDs by this company world wide was 320 tons of CO2. This is compared to sample figures for a trip of 5km to pick up a single DVD at a time in an average car would take 3,540,000 tons of CO2.


There was a paper released by the University of Massachusetts, which takes a more academic approach to the question. The findings of this paper stated that "the non-energy optimized streaming of a movie through the Internet consumes approximately 78% of the energy needed to ship a movie, but has a carbon footprint that is approximately 100% higher. However, by taking advantage of recently proposed “greening of IT” techniques in the research literature for the serving and transmission of the movie, we find that the energy 
consumption and carbon footprint of streaming can be reduced to approximately 30% and 65% respectively of that of shipping."

We can then say that streaming, with modern technology, such as highly rated energy efficient TVs and other technology, would use less carbon than having DVDs sent to you through the post.

A note on the rigor of these articles!

The information posted above does show that different ways of getting entertainment on to our screens have different carbon implications however it is also important to remember that this is a very complex issue and has many points which can be pulled apart but is meant to be a guide. For some of the criticisms of these kind of articles check out this blog which makes some good points.


Does it take less carbon to buy a DVD, go to rent a physical DVD (6 mile round-trip for me), or stream it on an XBox?

Going back to the original question, it might be able to give an idea as to the nest options. If the above conclusions are taken as correct then to buy a DVD uses more CO2 than having one sent to you, whether that would be after buying it or renting it. It can also be said that streaming generates less CO2 than sending a DVD through the post, as long as modern technology is being used to stream the film. Therefore at a quick look into the different research and opinions out there is would suggest that watching a film on your XBox would generate less CO2 than buy a DVD.

Hope this help and goes someway to answering you question! If anyone else has any questions they would like answering please let us at c-change know and we will try to get you an answer!!

Keeping out the Cold... Low Carbon Style

I'm not sure about you, but we've decided its blooming freezing outside at the moment!! And word is its not going to get any warming over the next couple of weeks and months. Therefore we thought we'd ask around for some suggestions on how to stay warm, while not generating lots of carbon and spending lots more money! Here are some of my favourite suggestions:

1. Crack out the Knitting

This idea was send to us by Brighton and Hove Living Wage Campaign via Twitter (@BHLivingWage). They suggest making like your Nan and knitting is a great way to warm your fingers, but the more you do the more your create adding nice warm layers for you to wear!

2. Join in with some Sports!

Here at the University of Brighton there are many different sports programs and activities that don't break the bank but will keep you nice and warm. SportBrighton offer many courses on all campuses so well worth checking out some of the choices on offer!

3. Snuggle Up
Bit of a favourite of mine :) getting close to someone else is always a good way to keep warm. But as highlighted on our Facebook page, it doesn't need to be someone it could just as easily be a pet that you snuggle up to and stay warm.

4. Cook a Warm Feast
Another suggestion via Facebook. At this time of year a warm meal can do wonders for keeping you warm and fuzzy on the inside! A hot drink will do you great wonders as well! Just remember when cooking or making hot drinks to limit the amount of carbon used while making food and drink. This simple guide will help.

5. The Classic "Put another Layer on!"
Its a classic for a reason.... It works. When your feeling a little bit chilly rather than cranking up the heating try putting an extra layer on to combat the cold!

There we have it some great suggestions for keeping warm and still lowering the impact on the planet!!

c-change has arrived and is here to stay!!

Over the past two weeks the c-change campaign has been out and about on all campuses of the University of Brighton. At the 9 different events, 'c-change champions' met and had positive conversations with over 1000 members of staff and students about the c-change campaign, the importance of reducing our carbon emissions and the target of 50% in five years.

So having been at all the events I wanted to take a moment to reflect upon some of my favorite moments through a series of pictures and if you were not able to attend show you how amazing the event were!!!

Our first person who braved the bike smoothie maker at our first launch event in Hastings!!

Closely followed by our first winner of a t-shirt (clearly saying 'turn off'!!)

'Play Your Carbon Right' Proved popular in teams as well as individuals

 All sorts of Staff got involved form all areas of the University!!

 Along with a lot of Students!!

Concentration was required at all times!!

But mainly fun was on the cards for all...

 This is just the beginning for the c-change campaign so keep your eyes peeled for more information about how to get involved as the campaign moves forward. Finally a huge THANK YOU to all who came along to the launch events and made them as much of a success as they were.

If you would like to see more photos from the events we have lots more on our facebook page

How Much?.... Some Simple Tips to Help you Reduce your Energy Bills

It's that time of year where we all start thinking about turning up the heating and snuggling down with some warm food and a hot drink, and why not!! Well one worry for a lot of people is the additional cost of heating and electricity use. Never fear we are here to offer some suggestions about how to keep your energy bills down throughout the year saving you money!

1. Layer up

As its starting to get cold here's one to think about right now. As the temperature drops think about whether you need to turn the heating up or could you stick on an extra layer? Also look into how your heating is set up, British Gas offer some great advice on areas like having heating on a timer, keeping radiators clear and lots of other areas.

Also if you're in rented accommodation speak with your landlord about other technical fixes that might both help you save money and increase the value of the property, such as replacing boilers that are more than 15 years old! There may even be grants available.

2. Put a lid on it!

This suggestion seems very simple, but it really does work. When heating liquid, whether it be for cooking or making a warm drink, make sure the lid of the pan or kettle is securely in place. It is estimated that by doing this it can cut both cooking time and energy usage by as much as 75%! (Attainable Sustainable

However this is not the only way to save energy in the kitchen. Energy Rethinking offers another 10 ways to reduce carbon produced in the kitchen which in turn will save you money!!


3. Unplug unneeded items

Even when something is plugged in and turned off it is still using energy! It is using even more if it is left in and turn on!!! One of the worst culprits of this is the games console. Practically Green highlights that all households appliances use energy when not in use. Therefore if you don't use something regularly, such as games consoles, constantly charging laptops and phone chargers just unplug them!

4. Try out Blackle!

This last idea is just to show something fun. Blackle is a google run search engine that has a low light imagery so as to save energy on your laptop, tablet or computer. It works exactly the same as google but saves energy!!

Hopefully through this list and the links included, you have found one or two things you would be able to do around you house to help reduce your bills but also save some carbon!

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c-change is here....

Hello and welcome to the first blog of the University of Brighton's new and exciting c-change campaign. This first blog will be an introduction to what c-change is and how you can be more involved if you fancy it!!

What is c-change?

Simply put c-change is a campaign to help the university reach its ambitious carbon reduction goal of 50% in five years. c-change is about informing and empowering staff, students and visitors to the university to make the decision to reduce carbon emissions wherever possible. c-change will be backed up by other technical developments around the university that will also help to reduce carbon emissions.

c-change will inform the university community about different activities that are carbon intensive and suggest small actions that individuals can take to reduce these impacts. These actions may be as small as ensuring that all lights and computers are switched off when leaving the office at the end of the day, or if possible taking the stairs rather than jumping in the lift.


Where will c-change be happening?

Everywhere! c-change will be happening on all campuses across the university and in the halls of residence. We will be on campus as much as possible starting with our launch events, in information for which can be found on our website

c-change is also online. There is the website under the sustainability pages on the University of Brighton website. You can follow c-change on twitter by following @_cchange_ and on Facebook through the page University of Brighton c-change Campaign

Can you get involved?

Of course you can!! First up we have the launch events that everyone can get involved with. These events offer an opportunity to come and find out more about the campaign and also see who is behind it. You can also get involved by joining in the conversation online.

Later in the campaign c-change will establish a champion scheme for both staff and students to get involved with so keep your eyes peeled!

So in a nutshell, that is what c-change is and what it hopes to achieve. We hope to see you at one of our many launch events starting on the 5th November in sunny Hastings!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad