Meet our new LUBS Student Sustainability Architects
Leeds University Business School (LUBS) has eight keen students undertaking projects that advocate for sustainability, under the role of Student Sustainability Architects. This is part of the LUBS blueprint plan and helps deliver impactful sustainability initiatives across the University.
Student Sustainability Architects are paid, part-time positions where students are given a sustainability project to deliver over 12 months. Meet the Student Sustainability Architects who have joined the Sustainability Service.
Here are this year's LUBS Student Sustainability Architects...
Maureen Kewe
Project title: To Walk
Degree: International Business and Marketing BSc
About me: Hello! My name is Maureen I will be working on the “To Walk” Project. I am so excited to be a Sustainability Architect as I aspire to play a part in building better societies and surroundings and leave an impact that demonstrates a positive shift in people’s mindset on sustainability. I am passionate about promoting self-care practices, and I believe that by engaging in daily sustainable practice, I can improve my social, mental and environmental interactions. I look forward to being part of this altruistic movement for a better future.
Yi-Chen Kuo (Christine)
Project title: Climate Anxiety
Degree: MA Advertising and Marketing
About me: Hi, I’m Yi-Chen (Christine). I will be working on the project ‘Reducing eco-anxiety for learners attending Climate Action Training’. With strong environmental consciousness, I would like to apply my creativity, learning (research and marketing skills) and previous work experience (4-year multi-disciplinary team experience as a special education teacher) to this project. Even though climate anxiety sounds like negative emotion, I prefer to regard it as the motivation for going green. From my perspective, taking action is one of the effective ways to deal with climate anxiety. Therefore, I am excited to promote hands-on activities with like-minded people in our workshop and advocate for sustainability on campus.
Esma Karakurt
Project title: Slow travel
Degree: Economics BSc
About me: Esma from economics is here. Hello! As a final-year student, I'm motivated to address our sustainability dilemma by reimagining how we travel and connect. Since travel is one of the major sources of carbon emissions, I want to be able to inform my community about travel and the long-term effects it has. I'm thrilled to be working on the Slow Travel initiative and supporting the LUBS community!
Sustainable living has been on my mind unconsciously over the years. The appreciation of our world and its natural resources ought to be a major theme that runs through everything I do, from slow travel to slow fashion. Sustainability, in my opinion, entails more than just lowering carbon emissions for the 'now'; it also involves safeguarding ecosystems, enhancing social welfare, and ensuring that future generations will have a place to live.
All in all, I’m hoping to conceptualise the importance of sustainability through transport. Power is knowledge and I am sure our community would be ever so grateful for LUBS’ commitment to sustainability.
Rasika Chandrasekaran
Project title: Borrow a suit for interview
Degree: MSc International Business
About me: Hello! My name is Rasika. I hail from Bangalore, India and am currently pursuing my Master’s in International Business here at Leeds. It's great to be here!
After three long years of online sessions, it's nice to be back with the excitement of in-person classroom teaching and events! It's such a joy to be able to meet new people and be a part of the lively energy of this city.
I am thrilled to be a part of the sustainability sector at the University. My role involves collecting gently used formal suits/blazers and providing them for rent to students for interviews and formal events. I am filled with gratitude to have this opportunity, where I can contribute to this cause more efficiently as a Student Sustainability Architect.
I believe that small actions add up to make a big difference eventually, and it is wonderful to be a part of this initiative that not only helps students look their best for important events, but also reduces waste and promotes sustainable practices in our daily lives together.
I am committed in providing my best efforts and contribution, ensuring that this project serves useful to the student community and brings in a positive change in the years to come.
Jessica Finnamore
Project title: Sustainable catering
Degree: Economics BSc
About me: Hi! My name’s Jess, and I’m a final year BSc Economics student. I am going to be working on the Sustainable Catering project alongside Sally Chan and Jamie Tickel.
I am passionate about reducing my impact on the environment through making more ethical consumption choices, particularly in terms of food. I have chosen to write my dissertation on sustainable food systems, looking specifically at the Green Revolution in Punjab, India, and exploring how the use of chemicals in farming impacts crop yields and the environment.
I am very excited to be working on a project where I have the opportunity to influence positive change on a larger scale. I hope that by switching to a fully plant-based menu the University of Leeds will be able to reduce its environmental impact and contribute to the growing movement towards a more compassionate and sustainable future.
Jamie Tickel
Project title: Sustainable catering
Degree: Business Economics BSc
About me: I have felt a connection with nature from a young age, my passions of outdoor sports such as surfing, skiing and hiking all revolve around the natural elements. This has made me passionate about preserving the environment and limiting human degradation.
Food production accounts for around a quarter of global carbon emissions, hence why I value it as one of the biggest changes that needs to occur. By working on the LUBS sustainable catering project, I will strive to reduce waste and provide more exciting plant-based options, that will motivate more people to consider even small alterations to their diet. I appreciate that for a vast number of students, there is the motivation to reduce their personal emissions, I hope the catering project can help students to reach these more sustainable choices.
I strongly believe in a bottom-up approach, and that if individuals begin to alter their consumption a little, we can collectively reverse our current climate trends. I hope that changes to the catering departments, that so many individuals use, will have a catalyst effect and lead to changes also outside of university.
Raj Sharma
Project title: Sustainability business competition
Degree: MSc Management Consulting
About me: I’m Raj Sharma, from Pune, India. I’m extremely enthusiastic about studying and promoting sustainability as I believe that it is our responsibility to create a better future for the generations to come.
Recognizing this responsibility, I want to be a change leader and play an active role in creating a better, cleaner, and greener Earth. To this extent, I’ve acted as a Project Manager at Leeds Community Consulting to help a client promote its practice of Circular Economy.
To further my knowledge and be a more effective change leader, I’ve opted for Sustainable Futures as an elective for my Masters' program.
I’m also thrilled to be working as a Student Sustainable Architect with the Leeds University Business School to develop a business competition in association with the CO-OP. By taking part in this project, I hope to promote and generate interest regarding sustainability within the student community and also strengthen my knowledge about sustainable practices and apply these skills and experiences as a aspiring consultant and play my part in streamlining the Net Zero movement.
Spoorthi Pulagam
Project title: Embedding sustainability in curriculum
Degree: Master of business administration
About me: Hello!! My name is Spoorthi, and I am from India.
I am someone who believes that small things matter and can act as catalysts for change. For example, as soon as I enter the Cantonment Board area (where my house is, back in India), I experience a sudden drop in temperature, and it feels so amazing to breathe fresh air and to be one with nature. I wonder how many people have the opportunity and the resources to enjoy the pure love of nature!
In recent times, nation-building has been associated with building physical and social infrastructure. The focus should really be on preserving what we already have, i.e., our environment. We should not feel "amazing" when we breathe fresh air; we should feel "normal." It is an individual and collective responsibility to repair and restore our beautiful planet.
For that to happen, I believe we need a three-pronged approach: Understand – Adopt – Educate.
We need to understand the destructive repercussions climate change is having on our planet and our role in reversing it.
Then, we need to adopt certain practices that help reverse those destructive repercussions.
Finally, we need to educate others and help them understand and adopt sustainable practices.
As I always believe, small things matter, and these small behavioural changes at the individual level can bring about a major change at the collective level! As a Student Sustainability Architect, I want to be the epicentre of this change, and this gives me a wonderful platform to develop awareness among younger generations and inculcate a positive force among them.
If you’re a student and you’re interested in becoming a Student Sustainability Architect, sign up to our newsletter and follow us on social media to be the first to hear when we’re next recruiting.
If you’re a member of staff and you’re interested in developing a Blueprint plan or recruiting Student Sustainability Architects to support on sustainability projects in your department, get in touch by emailing sustainability@leeds.ac.uk. To further build sustainability into your own work, you could also explore becoming a Staff Sustainability Architect.
Keep up to date on the latest news
-
- Follow us on Twitter: @UoL_Sus
- Follow us on Instagram: @uol_sus
- Follow us on Facebook: @UoLSustainability
- Sign up to our Sustainability newsletter
United Nations Sustainable Development Goals
We use the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as a framework to guide our activity. Our work reducing single-use plastic is linked to the following SDGs:
- Goal 4: Quality education
- Goal 10: Reduced Inequalities
- Goal 11: Sustainable cities and communities
- Goal 12: Responsible consumption and production
- Goal 13: Climate action
- Goal 15: Life on land
- Goal 17: Partnerships for the goals
Find out more about our impact on the SDGs.