Student and Staff Engagement in Sustainability

In 2025-26, the Sustainability Team launched the Sustainability Café series – relaxed, drop-in events designed to spark informal conversations about sustainability with staff and students. Held in high-footfall campus spaces, the cafés combine simple activities, free refreshments, and opportunities to connect everyday campus life with Roehampton’s wider sustainability goals.

Delivered in collaboration with the School of Health and Life Sciences, this Sustainability Café combined informal sustainability engagement with a guided biodiversity trail around Whiteland’s campus. Held on a sunny February morning, approximately 15 students and 5 staff members joined the event, spending time outdoors exploring local habitats and learning about the University's biodiversity initiatives. The event provided an opportunity to connect with nature while raising awareness of the Sustainability Team's work and the important links between biodiversity, wellbeing, and sustainability.

Green Week 2026 at the University of Roehampton brought together students, staff, and departments from across the institution in a vibrant celebration of sustainability, creativity, and community.  

The origins of Roehampton’s Green Week - originally known as Greenfest - date back to June 2024. The initiative was first proposed by MA student Jonathan Nobrega, who now lectures part-time at the University. Building on this idea, Green Week was established by a passionate group of staff and students, before later being led collaboratively by Roehampton Students’ Union (RSU) and the Roehampton Sustainability Team.  

This year’s programme showcased an impressive range of activities and learning opportunities, reflecting a shared commitment across the University to sustainable practices. From the relaunch of Dress for Success and a targeted donation drive for the Digby Student Pantry, to engaging discussions and displays on AI and the environment, the week demonstrated how sustainability intersects with multiple aspects of university life. Workshops on growing, crafting, and mindful living further enriched the programme, creating space for both practical learning and creative exploration.  

In this round-up, we reflect on Green Week from the Students’ Union perspective - what we delivered, what we learned, and what we hope to carry forward.

A Week of Reflection, Creativity, and Connection

Green Week officially began on Monday 23 March, opening with a relaxed “Sip and Sketch” crafternoon hosted in The Hive Café. Inspired by the natural beauty of Roehampton’s campus, the session encouraged participants to slow down and reconnect with their surroundings. Held in The Hive (Students’ Union’s sustainable café), the event offered a moment of pause in an otherwise busy academic environment.  

Harriet Kassner, a Hive team member since 2021, described the session as “extremely grounding,” highlighting its value as a break from day-to-day pressures. Rather than focusing solely on social interaction, the session centred on self-care, creativity, and mindfulness, with participants exploring texture, shape, and colour in a calm and reflective setting.  

This theme of wellbeing continued with a mindfulness meditation session delivered in collaboration with the Desi Society and external partners. The session emphasised the importance of taking time to pause - whether during a lunch break, before a class, or ahead of a busy meeting. Participants were introduced to practical techniques for incorporating mindfulness into their daily routines, reinforcing the idea that personal wellbeing is an essential component of sustainable living. Practicing these techniques outdoors further highlighted the additional benefits of connecting with natural environments.  

Sustainability on ALL Sides

The university's sustainability team also sat down with Jonathan Nobrega, a Roehampton graduate and Youth Project Coordinator at the London Wildlife Trust, about engaging young people from under-represented backgrounds in the sustainability sector. You can take a listen to the podcast here! The Colleges also did a fantastic job in their donation drives to their Community Pantry(s) that offer food support to those that need it. Alongside this, theinitiatives. Student Futures team relaunched their Dress-for-Success campaign, giving students the chance to reach professionalism in an incredibly sustainable way. Huge shoutout to all of the teams involved in these initietives. 

Hands-On Sustainability

A core strength of this year’s Green Week was its emphasis on practical, hands-on learning. RSU Sustainability Coordinator Hillary Nevyjel led an extensive programme of workshops designed to make sustainable living accessible and engaging. These included houseplant care and potting sessions, windowsill herb planting to support low-cost cooking, and tea blending workshops using herbs and flowers sourced directly from campus.  

One standout session was a syrup-making workshop led by Hive barista Daria Dumitru. Drawing on personal recipes developed with her family, Daria guided students through the process of creating syrups using fresh fruits, berries, and campus-grown ingredients. The workshop demonstrated how sustainability can be both creative and collaborative, bringing people together through shared practices of cooking and crafting.  

Research student and artist Bridget Moira Steenkamp also contributed a series of workshops centred on “slow-dye” techniques. Using natural materials such as onion skins, daffodils, and calendula, Bridget introduced participants to environmentally conscious methods of creating dyes. Students then used these materials to produce tassel accessories that were both quirky and expressive. Her work and process, displayed in the lead-up to and throughout Green Week in The Hive and the SU Help Desk, offered a valuable insight into the time and care required to produce natural alternatives to synthetic dyes commonly used in many industries today.  

Looking Ahead

Green Week 2026 demonstrated the power of collaboration across the University community. By bringing together creative practice, environmental awareness, and wellbeing, the week highlighted the many ways sustainability can be embedded into everyday life - proving that small changes can lead to meaningful impact.  

From mindful moments in The Hive to hands-on workshops and cross-campus initiatives, the week provided not only opportunities to learn, but also inspiration to continue these practices beyond a single week.  

As we look ahead, the Students’ Union remains committed to building on this momentum - supporting initiatives that encourage sustainable habits, foster community connections, and empower students and staff to make a positive impact.

As part of this commitment, The Hive has introduced two new initiatives designed to strengthen its sustainability practices in tangible ways. Peak & Wild Coffee, supplied by Matthew Algie, supports environmental restoration through its partnership with the John Muir Trust, helping to protect and restore wild spaces. Meanwhile, The Full Package scheme ensures that The Hive’s compostable takeaway packaging is collected and processed through specialist facilities, transforming waste into compost and renewable energy!

On 20 May 2026, Bridget Steenkamp delivered a Slow Eco Textile Event, attracting over 30 students from a range of disciplines. 

The workshop explored sustainable textile practices through an interactive display featuring books, academic journal articles, examples of creative work, and opportunities for discussion. Participants were encouraged to share their own experiences and interests in craft and sustainable textiles, creating valuable interdisciplinary conversations and connections.

The event highlighted the environmental impacts of textile production while showcasing creative alternatives centered on repair, reuse, natural materials, and slower, more sustainable approaches to consumption.

The Sustainability Team hosted a stand at the Digby Summer Fête, which attracted approximately 400 attendees. 

Located in a high-footfall area, the stand achieved strong engagement through interactive activities including a waste sorting challenge and a sustainability fact ring toss game. Visitors also learned about the University's sustainability initiatives, the work of the Sustainability Team, and opportunities to get involved through future events.

Our final Sustainability Café of the academic year took place at Froebel College as a sustainability-themed Crafternoon focused on creativity and reuse. 

Around 10–15 students, alongside members of staff, participated in activities designed to demonstrate how everyday items can be repurposed and given a new lease of life. Participants decorated tote bags and personal items, with one student transforming an old pair of wellington boots through creative painting. The event encouraged discussion around waste reduction, sustainable consumption, and the importance of reuse while providing a fun and creative space for students to engage with sustainability.

As the academic year came to a close and students moved out of halls, we invited the Roehampton community to donate unwanted items at Monte Hall (Froebel College, next to the Union Bar). The aim was to reduce waste and support fellow students and the wider community by giving pre-loved clothes, kitchenware, books, and household supplies a second life.

This collaborative initiative between the Students’ Union and the Sustainability Team saw generous contributions sorted and redistributed through several meaningful channels:

• The SU Community Pantry, which provides free essential items to students facing cost-of-living pressures
• The Dress for Success scheme via the Student Futures team, offering interview-appropriate clothing to support graduate employability
• British Heart Foundation collection points, helping raise funds through reuse
• Remaining items were listed on the Freegle app, where they were made available to local community members

Thank you to everyone who donated – your contributions helped reduce waste and supported others!

As a partner in this event, the University of Roehampton helped bring together students from across London to showcase research and projects focused on the UN's Sustainable Development Goals (SDG's). Read more about Roehampton's involvement here.

This event was run in collaboration with Apleona, our campus facilities partner, and brought together staff and students to take action for a cleaner environment. Together, volunteers collected over 50kg of waste from across campus and the surrounding area.

To help engage and incentivise participation, we offer free hot drinks to all volunteers as a small thank you for their time and effort. We aim to run at least one of these collaborative litter picks each year to encourage shared responsibility and community pride in our environment.

Founded in memory of a Roehampton law professor, these student-led, interdisciplinary workshops use craft-based learning to explore sustainability themes like fast fashion, single-use materials, and microplastics. They promote reflection, leadership, and action through creative, hands-on sessions linked to the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

The workshops have been running throughout the 2024/25 academic year, continuing to engage students across disciplines in meaningful, skills-based sustainability learning.

Read about the workshops in more detail on our Education for Sustainability section.

A flagship week of sustainability-focused events attended by hundreds across the university and led by the Student's Union.

Green Week Highlights

Green Week was a huge success, bringing together students and staff for hands-on activities and reflective moments that centered sustainability and well-being.

• Wild Walk – 4 students participated in a guided nature walk, appreciating the beauty of our local environment.
• Mindfulness Session – A well-attended session with 10 students, emphasizing the importance of mental well-being and nature connection.
• Green Fair – A resounding success with 200 attendees, engaging with eco-friendly organisations and sustainable businesses.
• Litter Picking – A dedicated group of 8 individuals contributed to a cleaner campus.
• Slow Ink Workshop – 55 students explored eco-friendly art practices, showcasing creativity and sustainability.
• Green Week Finale – A fantastic close to the week, with 50 students coming together to celebrate our collective efforts.

Green Week Finale Event at London Wetlands Centre