Going Green
St Christopher’s Go Green
In this ever changing climate in which we live in, it’s more important than ever to make an effort to stop global warming and give something back to the planet after we’ve taken so much.
That’s why in April St Christopher’s Inns are researching a dynamic and effective Go Green Policy. We are determined to cut our carbon emissions without cutting the fun filled, affordable experience you get in our hostels.
With this in mind I approached the industry experts and our hostellers to find out what we can do to cut that carbon and breathe a little easier in the cities where St Christopher’s Inns have laid down roots.
Global Action Plan are the leading, practical environmental action charity in the UK and they have a whole cupboard full of initiatives to help businesses like St Christopher’s Inns.
I caught up with Chris Large, National Business Programme Manager at Global Action Plan. I asked him what an organisation like St Christopher’s Inns could do to pitch in and help out. Here’s what he had to say:
“Staff can help out in reducing their Inn’s environmental footprint by making small habit changes which make a big difference. Lights and equipment left on overnight in bar areas, offices and kitchens can waste vast amounts of energy. At the end of a shift most people are eager to head home, but spending just one minute checking everything is turned off can save hours of electricity.
“Guests can also reduce carbon emissions from the Inns. As well as turning electrical equipment off, take other simple steps like keeping windows shut if the heating is on. Heating is usually the biggest use of energy in a building and it shouldn’t be wasted. Leaving a portable electric heater on overnight unnecessarily wastes as much energy in just one night as is needed to watch every episode of The Simpsons aired on British TV over the last 2 years.”
As a business there a number of viable options on offer. Here a couple that might just work.
The first is to explore an alliance with Environment Champions. This organisation works to involve employees, enthuse staff and increase awareness. To date they have helped East Sussex County Council reduce their waste by 45% and British Gas Transco cut their operational costs by £84,000.
Alternatively St Christopher’s could get involved with Ecoteams@Work. The EcoTeams programme started in the early 1990s and has continued to evolve and reach a range of audiences.
In the UK, Global Action Plan has taken Ecoteams to employees at the heart of various organisations. British Gas took the lead and was the first business to run Ecoteams amongst its employees. They were swiftly followed by DEFRA, various local authorities and a number of other networks such as the Quakers and the Women's Institute.
The advantages of exploring Ecoteams@Work are numerous. St Christopher’s Inns could reduce its environmental impact, cut bills and increase social networking. Our hostels could also benefit from raised environmental awareness and enhanced corporate networking.
David Miliband, Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs said: “"If you think one person's actions won't do much to achieve change then the obvious answer is to team up."
With this in mind I took the Go Green cause to the people who will be essential in making the St Christopher’s campaign a success – the backpackers. I chatted to the hostellers in our Borough High Street hostels to find out exactly what pushes their environmentally friendly buttons.
Mark is 22 and comes from Milwaukee. He does what he can as an individual with little things like reusing and recycling old water bottles. However he thinks St Christopher’s as a company has the power to do a lot more:
“There are a lot of energy suppliers out there and if you pick the right one you can power your hostels with electricity that wasn’t created by burning carbon and polluting the atmosphere.”
Jenny is 19, comes from Oxford and agrees with Mark’s take on things:
“If companies with corporate clout start demanding green energy then suppliers are going to have to start catering to this demand. Eventually the easy option of power created by burning fossil fuels will become antiquated and then the public will have a shot at affordable green electricity.”
On the other side of the fence we have Michelle who is 26 and lives in Antigua:
“I don’t believe the whole spiel about global warming. There’s no concrete evidence either way and the whole temperature rise could be completely natural. I think that the fossil fuels are there to be used but I do worry about what will happen when they’re gone.
“I think for that reason it’s important to invest in alternative sources of power and conserve what we have left. We should worry less about climate change and more about what will happen in our lifetime when there’s nothing to make electricity out of and we can’t power the schools and hospitals.”
A third of all carbon emissions in the UK are a product of electricity created from burning fossil fuels.
Ecotricity is a company that prides itself on creating environmentally friendly power and continually developing new sources of renewable energy.
In 2007 Ecotricity are hoping to create enough new green energy to power an additional 20,000 homes. On top of that they are combating emissions from the construction of wind turbines by launching a forest project. For the first 20,000 customers, 20,000 broadleaf trees will be planted.
What we Think Going Green Might Mean at St Christopher’s Inns
Across Europe we’re looking at the little things that will make a difference. Here’s what we have so far and you’ll be happy to learn that some of them are already in place.
- Install energy saving light bulbs wherever we can. They might be a little dim at first but just like Kelis these Lil Stars will brighten up your stay.
- Recycle the waste that builds up in our dorm rooms, kitchens, night clubs and offices instead of making those landfills swell.
- Install energy saving devices such as lights that turn off after five minutes.
- Install insulation in the walls and roofs of the older buildings in addition to double glazing so that we don’t exceed those hard earned carbon credits.
- Check out just how much power we can generate off our big, tall and sunny buildings by installing mini wind turbines and solar panels.
- Get rid of those pesky water wasting shower heads with a simple add on that keeps the pressure up and uses a lot less water. We can do the same for the taps too.
- If boilers need to be replaced install oil based devices. These are 82% efficient as opposed to gas which is only 75% efficient.
- Offer incentives such as drink discounts to hostellers who use products provided by us to clean their rooms and the bathrooms. This will cut cleaner costs and free up funds which can be then be spent on making the buildings more efficient.
- Use solar powered lamps to light the outdoor areas open to hostellers at St Christopher’s.
- Use sun pipes to reflect daylight into hard to reach areas which otherwise have to be lit by bulbs.
- Install Electrisave Meters to get an instant read on electricity use. The meter is made up of two parts. A sensor that clips onto the cables of our electricity meter and a portable, wireless monitor that shows how much electricity is currently being used, what it's costing and how much carbon dioxide we are released into the atmosphere.
If you want to find out more about Going Green with St Christopher’s drop me an e-mail at submissions@st-christophers.co.uk or take a trip to www.globalactionplan.org.uk.
