Media Centre

February 2012

Jonathon Porritt, the eminent writer, broadcaster and commentator on sustainable development, is being officially installed as the new Chancellor at Keele University on Thursday 9th February.

He will be the University’s fourth Chancellor and succeeds Professor Sir David Weatherall, who has retired after nine years. His installation as Chancellor is the first official event in Keele’s 50th Anniversary year.

Jonathon Porritt said:
"I am hugely honoured to have been asked to become the next Chancellor of Keele University.
I have enjoyed many contacts with the University over the last 15 years, and have been very impressed at the commitment shown by the Vice-Chancellor and many other members of staff in demonstrating real leadership on sustainability issues.

“Now is a very interesting time to be getting involved in the Higher Education sector and it’s important that my role as Chancellor at Keele is not just about challenging the university, but about challenging the sector as a whole, particular in regards to sustainability.

A coalition of  civil society leaders from UK organisations with over twelve million members will today (1 February) call for community energy to play a substantial role in meeting the country’s climate change targets.

Leading figures from The Co-operative; the National Trust; The National Federation of Women’s Institutes; the Church of England and Campaign to Protect Rural England will today meet Chris Huhne, Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, to launch their joint ‘vision for community energy’, which supports dramatically scaling up the number of community owned renewable energy projects across the country, and to discuss how the Government can best assist. 

The Swedish Twitter University is launching a new Department of Green Innovations and Solutions, in collaboration with Green Futures magazine. The department will tweet a story from the frontline of sustainability every Tuesday at 6 PM GMT.

Each presentation will be 15 tweets long and lead up to a discussion session, where anyone can participate using the #gfstu hashtag.
The stories – covering everything from 3D printing to the future of flying – will be presented by Martin Wright, Editor in Chief, and Anna Simpson, Managing Editor, and by friends and associates of Green Futures magazine. They will then chair a discussion on the topic.

The first Department of Green Innovation and Solutions event will take place on Tuesday 17 January, when Anna will give 15 tweets from the @SvTwuni Twitter account on the subject: Next generation DIY: 3D printers and the end of consumerism

London, 10th October 2011

Sustainable products and services will be mainstream by 2020, Forum for the Future claimed today, as they launched a study with Sainsbury’s and Unilever, designed to help the consumer goods industry meet the needs of the consumer of the future. Household brands and retailers will help make green living normal and easier for millions of people around the world, and progress towards sustainable consumption will not be knocked off course by a weak global economy, they said.

Sainsbury’s Chief Executive, Justin King, said: “Sustainability will continue to rise higher up the agenda over the coming years, so it is key that brands work to ensure they can respond to consumer demand. Being a sustainable company is not about box ticking, it’s about future-proofing your business and building trust and brand loyalty that will last for years to come.”