Guide to the UoM Climate Network

 

Photo by Mangopear creative on Unsplash

Whether you're new to Manchester this academic year or just looking for more opportunities to get involved in climate activism at the University of Manchester, this blog post is for you! Holly breaks down the various groups across the university that form the UoM Climate Network. 

What is the Climate Network?

The Climate Network joins together groups and projects at UoM that focus on environmental sustainability. It cultivates a community of academics, learners and enthusiasts to provide an opportunity to share knowledge and expertise about climate change and environmentalism.

What does the group include?

• The Environmental Sustainability Team - this team has recently embarked on its new and exciting vision called "Our Future" and "Social Responsibility: A 5-Year Plan". These documents extensively detail the university's pathway to achieving these strategy plans, and you can see the latest progress report here.
• People and Planet - this is the largest student network campaigning for social and environmental justice in the UK. Their current campaigns include Fossil Free, Sweatshop Free, Undoing Borders and Divest Barclays.
• Tyndall Centre - this is a world-class research centre based at UoM which works to deliver essential insights into energy and climate change developments. It works across disciplines, incorporating research of natural scientists, engineers, social scientists and economists. You can see the Tyndall Carbon Budget Tool here. 
• Manchester Environmental Research Institute - similar to the Tyndall Centre, this Institute connects researchers and experts from the natural science, healthcare, agriculture, water and energy disciplines to generate solutions to complex environmental challenges.
• UMBUG - The UoM Bicycle Users' Group has over 1,000 members, made up of members of staff and postgrads. Their aim is to foster a community feel, sharing cycle routes for all abilities, providing a buddy scheme and hosting monthly coffee mornings (in non-covid times) at Milk & Honey Café! You can find them on Twitter here.
• UCU Environment Working Group - the UCU is the largest trade union and association for students, academics and researchers working in the higher education sector. They campaign for an improved quality of education, research and working conditions. The UCU Environment Working Group takes a particular focus towards environmental issues within the sector.
• Sustainable Consumption Institute - this Institute launched a new research agenda at the end of 2019 called "Materialising Sustainabilities, Re-imagining Futures".

What else does the group involve?

Often guest speakers and external groups get involved with the Climate Network too! See below for the network's busy events calendar and to sign up to the emailing list. Each group has so much to offer - you can check them out individually or see them all on the Climate Network page. Additionally, if you want to add an event to the calendar email it to climatenetwork@manchester.ac.uk.

Where can I find out more?

Hopefully this post has given you a great starting point for new and exciting people and events to engage with through the UoM Climate Network! To check out the network more you can:

• Sign up to the mailing list
• Join the Facebook group

And of course share this post with your friends and peers at UoM! Speaking to those around you about climate issues is really what makes a difference and gets the sustainability ball rolling!

Author: Holly

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