Congratulations to Bristol Medical School for gaining Silver LEAF certifications in two of their buildings within one week, further demonstrating their outstanding commitment to sustainable research.
Research laboratories can have a significant environmental impact, often consuming vast quantities of energy, water and plastic while producing enormous amounts of waste. To help tackle this issue, University College London founded the The Laboratory Efficiency Assessment Framework (LEAF) programme in 2018.
The framework sets out several sustainability criteria for labs to meet in order to qualify for a bronze, silver or gold LEAF certification and provides calculators to track carbon and financial savings. By meeting LEAF criteria, lab users can benefit from reduced utility bills, increased research efficiency and greater access to funding, all while minimising their environmental footprint.
Last summer, the University of Bristol became the first university in the world to gain Bronze LEAF certifications in all 990 lab spaces. Building upon this success, Bristol Medical School has now been awarded Silver certifications in 41 lab spaces across two of their buildings: the BRI Level 7 and Bioresource labs. The Silver certifications were issued within less than a week of each other and are the first to be awarded this year at the University.
The Silver award includes 11 different criteria and holds a particular focus on increasing equipment efficiency and reducing single-use plastics. The BRI Level 7 and Bioresource labs successfully met every criterion required for the award, including regular discussion of sustainability topics within meetings, participating in recycling schemes and conducting regular equipment maintenance.
The labs even went the extra mile to implement several other sustainable practices. For example, the BRI Level 7 staff created a pipette shop to repair and resell unused pipettes for a discounted price, generating £400 in savings so far. Both buildings also completed this year’s Freezer Challenge, an international competition promoting energy efficient practices in cold storage management.
These latest accreditations add to Bristol Medical School’s impressive track record regarding sustainability and place the School in a fantastic position to achieve its goal of gaining Silver certifications in every lab by the end of the year.
The School’s remarkable progress further contributes to our wider institutional goals of gaining Silver certifications in every STEM School by 2024 and becoming net-zero by 2030.