In February 2021, despite the disruption of the COVID-19 pandemic, Scotland’s colleges declared a climate emergency and committed to achieving net zero by 2040.
In response to this challenge Borders College, Forth Valley College and West Lothian College formed the Central & South Scotland College Partnership, supported by EAUC Scotland. Being among the smallest FE institutions in Scotland and without any staff dedicated exclusively to sustainability, the colleges recognised that they required additional support. By combining their limited budgets, the partnership secured a dedicated sustainability resource - hiring a Sustainability Project Manager whose time and costs are shared equally between the colleges.
Since starting in January 2022, the Sustainability Project Manager has become integrated into the college teams and has enabled them to develop strategies such as new net zero plans, to secure funding for and deliver campus decarbonisation projects and to introduce new initiatives such as climate change risk assessments.
Annual carbon savings achieved with the initiative: