IT awarded Green Flag for waste reduction and energy
IN RECOGNITION of its reduction in litter, waste and energy, IT Sligo has been awarded the prestigious Green Flag award as part of An Taisce's GreenCampus programme.
The institute formally signed up in spring 2019 to the Green Flag programme, which is an international symbol of environmental sustainability that encourages high environmental performance.
The college’s success in the Green Campus initiative has been attributed to the hard work of both staff and students, which has culminated in positive environmental management and impacts towards savings across waste and energy.
Among the achievements of the initiative have been a 33% public sector energy reduction target reached in 2020, working towards a 50% energy reduction by 2030. There are also segregated bins for general waste, recyclables and compost installed and there is an ongoing campus decarbonisation plan
There is now a Green Campus section on the IT Sligo website and the college has embedded sustainability topics throughout teaching programmes and student projects.
The IT is also working with partners to promote environmental best practice throughout its wider community.
The institute hosted a first Green Week in tandem with national events by Green Campus Network. A student survey (Spring 2019 and 2020) showed that 92% of students thought it was either very important or important for IT Sligo to show leadership on environmental issues
An Taisce director Dr Michael John O’Mahony congratulated IT Sligo on achieving the Green Flag and said the work presented to them "has been outstanding".
IT Sligo’s sustainability officer Fiona Britton thanked everyone who participated in the project. “It’s an honour to see the Green Flag flying, and I think there is no better signal to our purpose than to see the flag, because it not only represents what we've achieved so far but also our strong ambition for the future,” she said.
Head of Environmental Science department at the IT Dr Frances Lucy said she felt a great sense of pride over the Green Flag raising ceremony.
She said: “During Covid-19 we showed so much meitheal. I use this Irish term because it was about meitheal, everybody coming together and working towards us all having a better future”