World Student Community for Sustainable Development

As Campus students and members of SfGS – UoN, we are obligated to playing a major role in developing a sustainable campus life and consequently, contributing to a larger “environmental footprint”. Our broad objective (a restatement of 2008 Office target) is to measure and assess the current conditions and consumption patterns at The University of Nairobi and introduce specific recommendations that will lead to the development of a sustainable Campus environment.

Goals of the audit:

• Establish a theoretical base for reducing demand and consumption of energy throughout the campus. We shall recommend a more efficient/sustainable energy supply system in tandem with the local context. In the long term; we hope to develop a “best practices” energy management plan from demand to supply. Advocate for on-site renewable energy production e.g. solar energy gradually reducing reliance on the national grid.
• Enhance human health by advocating for improved indoor air quality and comfortable outdoor spaces. Our strategies will be limited to ENERGY, WATER AND WASTE MANAGEMENT.
• Increase awareness and education on environmental issues. Create an institutional network with common goals and objectives for a sustainable future. The Campus project shall serve as a true model for illustrating the power of education throughout institutions to reach a wider audit and educate citizens for sustainable development. The steering committee members prepare presentations on various topical issues. We have also identified several specialists within our area of interests who have agreed to conduct seminars to our membership upon invitation.

Having highlighted the broad task ahead of us, we have just started to work out the logistics of the project. We have met a section of the university administration and sought for their mandate to carry out the environmental audit. The environmental audit will look at the whole campus including buildings, relationship between buildings, open spaces, infrastructures and campus administration as well as personal consumption habits.

The University of Nairobi’s project is just but a pilot case to be implemented in one of the University’s eight campuses. Our project goal is to green all the University of Nairobi’s campuses, and later on other universities and public learning institutions.

TIMELINES:
The audit was scheduled to be carried out within the timeframe presented below.
March 2008: Research on energy water and waste management commenced. Members were briefed on the various roles to perform in undertaking the project.
April 2008: Members presented the literature review on the various aspects of the study that they were carrying out. These were water, energy and waste. We held discussions on the same and received inputs from interested parties both at the university administration and student community.
May 2008: Members finalized the discussion on Literature review and discussed the methodology of the study, the sample and the data required. Members were allocated roles to perform during the data collection stage under the main three areas of study (water, electricity and waste).
June 2008: Data collection and processing. Discussions on the results obtained.
July 2008: Preparation, presentation and discussions on the draft report.
August 2008: Preparation of the final report and presentation to the affected parties in a seminar to be organized by SfGS – UoN. The participants in the seminar will include the university administration and student community.
August 2008 onwards: Liaising with various local and international actors to implement some of the recommendations prescribed in the environmental audit report.

TREE PLANTING AT THE UNIVERSITY OF NAIROBI GROUNDS
With the help of the Kenya Forests Department and YMCA, SfGS-UoN has been able to obtain 1000 seedlings to be planted at the university grounds with the active participation of our members. However, we still face the daunting challenge of raising petty cash for working out the logistics of such activities, e.g. transportation, refreshments, and subsequent maintenance.