Green Gown Award success for Cardiff University Food

Cardiff University Food has been named a winner in its category in the 2024 Green Gown Awards.

Recognising the exceptional sustainability initiatives being undertaken by universities and colleges across the UK and Ireland, the Green Gown Awards take place annually.

Cardiff University Food won the ‘Campus health, food and drink’ category this year for commitments to sustainable food procurement, reducing its carbon footprint, and prioritising health, nutrition and taste.

The win highlights the University’s Green Shoots café, the plant forward (vegetarian/vegan) cafe in Main Building, as not just a great place to meet, study or socialise but for events including monthly Supper Clubs for students and a free three course meal served as a community event.

The judges agreed this was a great example of community-building through making catering more sustainable.

Professor Wendy Larner, Vice-Chancellor, said: "It is wonderful for the dedication to sustainability and wellbeing of Cardiff University catering team to be recognised in this way.  It affirms our role in Cardiff and Wales and celebrates the team’s leadership in promoting healthy, plant-forward dining options while fostering inclusivity and supporting local food sources in a vibrant community setting."

Also recognised in the Awards is the project Generation Wild: Connecting children from disadvantaged communities with nature, which was highly commended in the ‘Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in Sustainability’ category. The judges recognising its potential to “act as a catalyst for change across the environmental education sector. It sees three of the University’s Schools – Psychology, Geography and Planning and Architecture – work with WWT (the nature charity formerly known as the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust), to support opportunities for children from underserved and underrepresented backgrounds to connect with nature and has so far helped more than 37,000 children and secured funding to continue for another three years.

The ECO Committee, School of Healthcare Sciences, was also shortlisted in the  ‘Sustainability Champion – Staff' category. It was formed in 2023 with volunteers representing the School’s academic staff, professional services staff, and students. Members work to change understanding of positive climate change and focus on improving staff and student wellbeing. Successful activities have so far included recycle re-use schemes, clothes swaps, litter picks, promoting active transport, a hedgehog survey, and building bug boxes.