Edinburgh Napier University

Tag: sustainability

Libraries Week 2023

Libraries Week 2023

Libraries Week is an annual celebration held to promote the best that libraries have to offer. This year, Libraries Week becomes Green Libraries Week!

From the 2nd to the 8th of October, libraries across the UK will celebrate the work they do related to climate change and sustainability. 

Find out what’s happening in libraries throughout the UK during Green Libraries Week 2023 by following @librariesweek  

Libraries Week 2023 Resources

You can search for library resources on all sustainability and climate change topics using LibrarySearch 

If you find a book is at another campus library, you can always request it through our Click and Collect service. 

Lions Gate Garden

Lions gate Garden

Adjacent to the Library at Merchiston campus is the Lion’s Gate Garden. You can see the garden from the relaxation area in the Library.  

The Lion’s Gate Garden is an interdisciplinary, permaculture learning and demonstration site. Functioning as a garden, outdoor sustainability laboratory, allotment, venue, performance, re-wilding, and relaxation space. Furthermore, It is designed to protect and enhance the biodiversity of Edinburgh Napier University campuses as per the University’s Environmental Sustainability Strategy 

Find out more about the Lion’s Gate and the other green initiatives across the other campuses including the orchard at Craiglockhart and how you can become involved on the Lion’s Gate Blog. 

By Sarah Jeffcott

Read more on nature with these posts:

Wild Animals of Scotland

International Day of Zero Waste

 

Lions’ Gate Garden: Digital Growth

The Lions’ Gate Garden is a permaculture habitat adjacent to the library at Merchiston campus. The gardens, allotment, pond, and outdoor laboratory provide a space to relax and unwind.

Three years ago, Research Fellow and Interaction Design Lecturer Callum Egan sparked the idea of using digital technology and environmentalism to create “techno gardens to make real spaces for people”.

The digital interactions aim to inspire people on educating and taking action for climate change and ecosystems.

 

Some of these interactions include:

  • Augmented realities
  • QR codes
  • Building food forests
  • Wifi and sensor icons

The pandemic has even taught us all to be more resourceful and individuals have shown a growing hobby for urban gardening! As the seasons change at Lions’ Gate, we can be more ‘fruitful’ by generating natural resources, from strawberries to Christmas trees. This creates social spaces and could even make homemade jams and chutneys!

 

Christmas Trees

Photo by Dave Michuda on Unsplash

 

But how can we incorporate more ‘greenness’ into university teaching spaces and libraries?

 

https://www.volunteeredinburgh.org.uk/volunteer/find-opportunities/?search=

 

You can find more information about the Lions’ Gate Garden project in the link below:

https://blogs.napier.ac.uk/thelionsgate/

Sustainability in Academic Libraries

How can universities become a spur for sustainable development in the next generation?  One way would be by engaging more with their local communities.

Here at Edinburgh Napier, we encourage you to become involved in groups, societies or activities that help make campuses greener places for working and studying.

We are even committed to minimising our carbon footprint beyond the campuses. 80% of our waste is recycled, while the remaining 20% is used for fuel production. Further information can be found in the links below:

https://www.napier.ac.uk/about-us/environmental-sustainability

https://www.napier.ac.uk/about-us/environmental-sustainability/get-involved

 

 

Bookshelf and plants

Photo by Pickawood on Unsplash

One of the upsides of the Covid pandemic is that it has taught us all how to be more digitally resourceful. Our academic libraries are capitalising on these eco-friendly practices:

 

  • Digitisation – with the availability of ever-changing technology, physical information can be converted into digital formats, from physical photographs to handwritten documents in PDF.

 

 

  • Onedrive is free cloud storage. It is a great way of storing and saving large files and documents online, accessing on other devices and sharing with others. You no longer need a ring binder folder full of paper!

 

Further resources:

https://support.microsoft.com/en-gb/onedrive

https://www.qs.com/improve-sustainability-higher-education/

 

 

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