Keele University has achieved a record number of nominations for the prestigious Green Gown Awards which celebrate sustainability in higher education.

And as a testament to its commitment to sustainability, Keele has been named as a finalist in all six award categories that it entered this year.The University has been nominated for awards in the following categories:

Benefiting Society: Community Legal Outreach Collaboration Keele (CLOCK) - 9,000 volunteering hours to provide access to justice to 4,000 people.

Student Engagement: Weigh to Go - cutting plastic through the zero-waste shop at Keele SU.

Student Research with Impact: Adam John Proctor for working with the Sports Centre to convert the paper wellbeing map to an interactive online application with customisable layers including facilities like water points and running routes.

Sustainability Champion: Sam Gibbons, Keele Students’ Union Activities and Community Officer (2018-19).

Student Sustainability Champion: Tom Bedford, 2nd-year Environment and Sustainability student, for his involvement with the climate movement, including attending the UN Summit, working with UKYCC? And organising a UK climate conference.

Total Reporting: Quality of sustainability reporting.

Established in 2004, the Green Gown Awards recognise the exceptional sustainability initiatives being undertaken by universities and colleges across the UK and Ireland. With sustainability moving up the agenda, the Awards have become established as the most prestigious recognition of best practice within the further and higher education sector.

The winners will be revealed at a glittering awards ceremony at Glasgow Science Centre on Tuesday 26 November.

Professor Mark Ormerod, Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Provost and the Institutional Lead for Sustainability said: “I am delighted that we have been shortlisted for six Green Gown Awards this year. There are some really fantastic sustainability initiatives which have been recognised here.

“Sustainability is a key institutional priority for Keele, and to have been shortlisted for so many awards shows the breadth of our sustainability activities and our determination to embed sustainability in everything we do at Keele.”