We're going green for June
As one of the biggest NHS trusts in London, we have a responsibility to be greener and more sustainable for the benefit of our staff, patients and the general public.
Throughout June we will be hosting and sharing information on the effects of air pollution and how we can live a more sustainable life.
We have just launched our latest Barts Green Plan for 2022. Read more on our plans to go greener!
Our Green Webinars
Sustainability Webinar 8th June 12-1pm
Join our webinar on NHS Sustainability Day, where we'll be talking about energy - the price of it, the problems it causes, and how fuel poverty is affecting our patients.
- Overview of green plan, focussing on energy components, impact of energy on finances, patient experience, health outcomes, climate change and how we’ve decreased consumption.
- Impact of climate change on health equity.
- An overview of the demographics of people in North East London and how we're tackling climate change.
- Impact of fuel poverty on the health outcomes of patients in our care.
The session will be hosted on Microsoft Teams.
Active Travel Webinar 16th June 6-7pm
Join us on Clean Air Day to discuss one of the most important ways to clean up our air – through Active Travel!
- Active Travel is defined as using the human body to make journeys. This could be walking, cycling, jogging, unicycling, swimming… and mixed methods of travel including public transport.
- We will be talking about the benefits of Active Travel for both physical and mental health and wellbeing (spoiler – it’s very, very good for both), some of the barriers and challenges that we may face, and ways to overcome them.
- We have a panel of experts ready to share their experiences and provide guidance, including Cycling Superhero Kamar Omar, (@auntiekay28) on twitter, Emma Richards, co-chair of our Women’s Network and participant in our Car Free June Challenge plus other guests!
The session will be hosted on Microsoft Teams.
Living car free for June
We are giving our colleagues the opportunity to challenge themselves and live car free for the first two weeks of June leading up to Clean Air Day on 16 June!
Staff would have to swap everyday journeys normally by car for walking, cycling or public transport.
We have 14 Brompton Folding Electric Bikes to lend to staff for the challenge. Live in a hilly area? No problem – the motor will assist them to cycle along in style. Live far from work? No problem – the bike folds down really small for train travel.
The benefits of this challenge have huge potential for positive changes to our environment and health.
- Saves time: 2km is a 30-minute walk or 10-minute bike ride. In traffic, driving 2km can take much longer in a car!
- Saves money : no more parking fees, no need to spend £££ at the pump, get your exercise done while your travel instead of forking out at the gym
- Saves lives: increased cycling and walking prevents early deaths. Cycling in particular is fantastic for health, reducing the risk of cancer by 45% and heart disease by 46%. The risk of injury is outweighed by benefit to health by 20:1
- Great for your mental health and wellbeing: compared with car travel, active commuters have significantly better overall psychological wellbeing
- Reduce your air pollution exposure: as well as being emission free, an active commute can also reduce your own exposure to air pollution
So keep tuned to see how #TeamBarts stepped up to the challenge!