Green Pledge
Trinity Garden - providing a green inner-city oasis for the community
Trinity pledges to develop and improve it's ecological awareness and take steps to reduce waste both as an organisation and within the larger community.
We will do this by:
- Implementing energy saving initiatives, as detailed in our Green Audit
- Identifying a strategy for delivering a Solar PV installation
- Support the local community to participate in the Bristol Green Capital year
- Provide a venue for Green Capital events
Following the recommendations of the green audit undertaken by UWE graduates in 2014 year, we have set short and long term goals to make our Grade II* listed building and charity more ecologically sound.
Short term goals have already been set in motion, such as the switch from traditional lighting LED lights in all our halls, workspaces and outdoor spaces and switching to a green energy provider. The Trinity Centre has an Energy Performance Certificate rating of C - considerably higher than similar historic buildings, which have an average rating of D. Recent installation of a new boiler and Building Management System (BMS) system, insulation works to the loft alongside the LED lighting has led to a very good rating being achieved for the style of building.
Other actions such as staff training and public awareness are an on going commitment. We are encouraging our visitors to show a positive attitude towards keeping green, such as having recycling points. Through leading by example, we hope to increase local people’s awareness of what can be done. These actions will be combined with workshops and activities around recycling, permaculture and keeping green Trinity will continue to work within the community to build awareness around green issues.
Long term we aim to install solar panels on the premises and implement ongoing improvements within the building to reduce energy loss. We are seeking funding to become more self-sustainable and use less energy within the building. One example of this would be our goal to replace the acrylic coverings to the original stain glass windows with double glazing, to help better insulate the building.
As well as directly developing the building Trinity aims to develop new and improve existing projects based around sustainability and keeping green. We plan to do this by continually supporting and working with local art projects such as Litterati who held a week's residence in 2014 at Trinity. The project was a culmination of local artists running free daily workshops for young people based around the idea of re-using items that would be traditionally seen as rubbish. This project educated young people about the amount of waste that is produced as well as ways to re-use and prevent so much waste.
We will continue to support 'green' or 'eco' themed conferences and workshops held within the venue offering advice about local resources such as catering and transport links in addition to offering a discounted rate for charities and non-profit green organisations.
We will also evolve our own projects, investing more time into supporting flagship projects such as our Garden Project and Arts West Side. As part of the Bristol 2015 programme we will be delivering the 'Grow It...Cook it...Eat It!' project, to educate, support and involve people within the community in the Green Capital agenda, targeting hard to reach groups as well as the wider community.
Keep an eye out on our website to find out more about this and other projects!
