Jesus College discusses decarbonisation report and the challenges of reaching net zero
The College shared proposals for decarbonising its operations and estate while acknowledging the challenges it – and other historic Cambridge colleges – face in achieving net zero emissions.
Jesus, which is seeking to be a leading academic institution in its approach to climate change, led a discussion recently with Bursars and Domestic Bursars from all Cambridge Colleges invited to attend in a bid to encourage greater teamwork and collaboration across Cambridge on sustainability.
Last year, Jesus committed to reducing its carbon footprint and achieving carbon zero status with the launch of both a Responsible Investment Policy alongside a detailed Sustainability Strategy.
Those aims received a significant boost with funding from the Government's Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme, delivered by Salix Finance, for the creation of a fully designed and costed decarbonisation report to eliminate fossil fuels and improve the fabric of the buildings across the site.
The key focus of the Salix-funded decarbonisation report is improvements to infrastructure, with suggested priorities of data measurement, improving buildings fabric, degasification, investment in renewables and promoting changes in behaviour and usage.
Jesus shared details of the decarbonisation plan, as well as other progress it is making to achieving wider sustainability aims, with representatives from other Cambridge Colleges at its first Sustainability Forum.
College Bursar, Richard Anthony emphasised the scale of the challenge at Jesus, which has more than 100 operational buildings, a main site of 27 acres with over 80 houses in multiple occupation/Fellow’s houses, and kitchens that provide around 160,000 meals per year. He said the College had taken the dual approach of working on its Responsible Investment Policy alongside the Sustainability Strategy to ensure alignment and shared goals across the organisation.
Domestic Bursar, Stuart Websdale, described the challenges for sustainability at Jesus including the scale of work and disruption involved; the difficulties in working with a transient student community, the fact that many initiatives take time due to consultation with the local planning authorities or the need to sequence work; and the risks involved when investing in evolving technology. He identified the main areas of focus for decarbonisation at Jesus College as: research, investing in its buildings, offsetting and teamwork.
Mr Websdale said that making changes to buildings had significant financial implications, including setting appropriate standards for the future, managing disruption and providing temporary accommodation. He said it’s also difficult to ensure that people live and work more efficiently in existing buildings because it requires a change in habits and mindsets, and sometimes changing how and when buildings are occupied.
He said: “Sustainability is a priority for Jesus College. The information gained from our recent decarbonisation report is relevant to others, who face similar challenges due to the historic nature of so many buildings. The event provided a useful setting to begin our discussions. I hope it was the first of many opportunities for us to collaborate and share best practice.”
Professor John French, Senior Associate of the Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership and an expert in sustainable development, biotechnology, renewable energy, and business strategy described the practical lessons learned from other building projects with similar challenges, including Buckingham Palace, Lambeth Palace and properties owned by the National Trust; and the existing standards by which sustainable buildings are measured. He also explained how an understanding of embodied carbon and carbon sequestration by Building Element should be considered and illustrated the comparison between refurbishment with demolition and rebuild. His presentation ended the Forum with the note that most historic estate portfolios will not reach Zero carbon by their target dates without an element of offsetting, as residual emissions will remain.
John Dix, Bursar of Darwin College and Chair of the Bursars Sustainability Sub-Committee, said: “As in so many things, the collaboration amongst the Cambridge Colleges on sustainability is now well established and impressive. Sharing experiences and helping build collective expertise has become the norm as the many Colleges grapple with decarbonising their buildings and operations.”
