The Green Gown Awards is an environmental competition open to all tertiary education institutions in Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific.
Victoria is a finalist in three of the 11 categories: carbon reduction, leadership and student excellence.
Vice-Chancellor Professor Grant Guilford is delighted Victoria has been recognised as one of the leading educational institutes in sustainability.
“Environmental responsibility is important to Victoria. Whether it’s through teaching and research that addresses global environmental challenges, or through sustainable initiatives on campus—we make sure we’re ‘walking the talk’,” he says.
The latest data shows the University is making big gains in multiple areas such as reducing paper use and energy consumption, and supporting academic research and teaching in the sustainability field.
Under its de-carbonising goals, the University has focused on stationary energy and transport as target areas, and as a result of numerous initiatives has reduced CO2 emissions by 12 percent on 2007 levels, while continuing to grow its campus.
The Vice-Chancellor is also in the running for the leadership award, which is judged on institution-wide impact, external engagement, shaping high-level strategy and turning strategy into results.
Professor Guilford joined the University in early 2014 and has already made a significant impact in the area of sustainability. He established a new role of Assistant Vice-Chancellor (Sustainability), integrated sustainability into the strategic plan, facilitated the decision to divest from fossil fuels and led sector-wide encouragement of central government on climate change targets.
His efforts have raised the profile of sustainability at Victoria, created a mandate for staff and students to get involved, and motivated wider action.
The third Victoria representative is fourth-year student Rory Lenihan-Ikin who has championed and delivered initiatives such as an organic food co-op, a climate change innovation think tank, organic waste collection, an energy saving campaign and a community garden.
The winners will be announced at an awards ceremony in Geelong, Australia on 22 October.