Fitzwilliam College has an active Environmental Committee, composed of students, Fellows and staff, working together to implement green initiatives and increase awareness of environmental issues within Fitzwilliam.
The College's environmental activities and objectives are outlined in the Fitzwilliam College Environmental Policy with ambitious targets covering energy and water consumption, waste management, pollutants, travel, and purchasing, as well as standards for the environmental sensitivity of new buildings such as the refurbishment of accommodation blocks A to F. We have won a Gold Award and an Environmental Improvement Award by the University's Green Impact Scheme in special recognition of the College's work to bring demonstrated and positive change.
The Environmental Committee also seek to engage College members in environmental issues through initiatives such as our innovative carbon offset programme, FitzOff energy reduction campaign and the Fitzwilliam College community allotments.
Designed to encourage creative thinking around environmental issues and actions among Fitz staff, students and academics, the Fitz Environmental Prize, meanwhile, carries a grant of up to £500. Deadline: 14 January 2022
For more information about how you can make a positive contribution, please see our JCR Green Booklet and MCR Green Information Leaflet.
A shared space within College for growing food and flowers
The Fitzwilliam community allotments were founded in 2014. Located behind Wilson Court, the beds are open to all students and staff (academic and otherwise), and are used for both individual growing and regular communal gardening sessions. Seeds and equipment are paid for by the college, and so the allotments provide a free and convenient way for members of the college to leave the library and be outdoors with people they might otherwise have the chance to interact with. Produce has included potatoes, broad beans, sunflowers and near-constant chard. The food grown is advertised on the allotment’s Facebook page and made available to the entire college. Among plentiful other assistance, the college’s head gardener has recently gifted two gooseberry bushes to the allotments.
The allotments were partly funded by the Fitzwilliam Society, who also recently donated funds for a mini-greenhouse.
Our aims are to audit energy use, set targets for improvement and motivate and enable students and staff to conserve energy.
Through our active Environment Committee we have worked with the Maintenance Department to:
- install LED light bulbs
- install motion detector light switches in newly refurbished accommodation
- ensure that all window replacements are triple-glazed whenever possible
- monitor the energy consumption of all buildings
- install draft proofing on aging windows
We also aim to engage students in considering their personal energy usage through the annual FitzOff competition. A prize is awarded to students who make significant energy reductions over a two week period.
Our aim is to promote recycling within College and reduce the amount of waste we send to landfill.
The Accommodation and Housekeeping department provide see-through bags to all residents of College for the collection of recyclable products. All recycling is co-mingled, and the bags are clearly labeled with details of what can be recycled.
All of our garden waste is recycled.
Food waste from the College kitchens is collected six days a week for recycling and composting.
Waste cooking oil is recycled for biodiesel.
The College aims to make full use of all recycling facilities provided by Cambridge City Council and private suppliers, including glass, cans, paper, plastic bottles, batteries, print cartridges, cardboard and furniture.
The College has recently purchased a waste compactor to reduce the number of waste collections required.
The Environmental Committee's aim is to minimise the College's use of substances which are chemical pollutants in gardening and cleaning.
The Committee has worked with departments throughout the College to reduce the the use of chemical pollutants. This has resulted in:
- The Accommodation and Housekeeping Department using only environmentally friendly cleaning products.
- The Gardens Department using organic, non-toxic products wherever possible.
- The Maintenance Department using water-based paints instead of oil-based paints wherever possible.
The College's aim is to encourage sustainable approaches to travel, in order to reduce CO2 emissions, congestion and reliance on the motor vehicle.
Cycling
Cycling is by far the most convenient way of getting around Cambridge. Fitzwilliam provides secure cycle parking spaces for students and staff on site. The College has recently undertaken various cycle safety initiative. This includes installation of a dropped kerb for direct access onto Huntingdon Road.
In order to promote the Government's Cycle to Work Initiative, Fitzwilliam is a member of Cyclescheme which allows employees to purchase tax-free bikes.
Plan your cycle route for Cambridge and further afield with CycleStreets.
The Cambridge Cycling Campaign was set up in 1995 to campaign for the rights of cyclists and to promote cycling in and around Cambridge.
Buses
Buses into Cambridge from Fitzwilliam can be caught from:
Madingley Road:
Citi4 and Uni4 can be used to get to the West Cambridge Site, the Sidgwick Site, the University Library and the town centre. Every ten minutes.
Huntingdon Road:
Citi5 and Citi6 go to the town centre every ten minutes.
The following bus companies operate locally in and around Cambridge:
Walking
Navigate your way around Cambridge on foot! walkit.com can generate your route, journey time, calories burned and CO2 emissions saved.
Car sharing
Save money, reduce your carbon footprint and reduce congestion. CamShare is a free online car sharing scheme.
In the interests of preventing unnecessary travel and reducing carbon emissions, Fitzwilliam encourages staff and Fellows to hold meetings via teleconferencing whenever possible.
Facilities for staff and Fellows
The University's Audio Conference Service provides a dial-in number and code for up to ten participants per call. To set up a call using this service, contact the College IT Office.
Skype-enabled laptops are available on request from the College Co-Ordinator and from the Conferences and Events Office.
The University has full video-conferencing facilities, including dedicated suites and a portable setup that can be hired. For more details see the UIS Video Conferencing website.