City of Bristol College was delighted to host the COP26 photography exhibition organised by The National History Consortium. The photography has been displayed at our South Bristol Skills Academy, and made digitally available for all staff and students to see, and has been sparking important conversations about the environment and the climate crisis both inside and outside of the classroom.
The exhibition to mark the end of the climate summit was celebrated by a gathering of students from our My World, My Home group, key supporting partners and some of the photographers exhibiting their work. Attendees shared their views and discussed their ideas on what they are their organisations are currently doing and will do in the future to support the sustainable agenda.
Our representative Becky Wilkins shared with the group some of the initiatives being driven by City of Bristol College’s Sustainability Group, which is made up of members of staff and representatives from the My World, My Home group. Our sustainable efforts include implementing the cycle to work scheme, installing electric charging points at all Centres, solar energy and heating and our efforts to recycle and reduce waste.
Gnisha Bevan from The Black Seed Network, a group of BAME environmentalists, said “We are all part of this conversation and everyone’s input, thoughts and skills are important. Too often people have the conversations with no follow up, they want to challenge this and honour and recognise the skills and talent that are out there”.
Mike Burkin, a regional campaign organiser from Friends of the Earth, stated that Bristol has declared a climate emergency and the aim is for the city to achieve ‘carbon zero’ by 2030. He discussed how employment initiatives will be key to furthering the city’s sustainability plans, with a focus on green apprenticeships and skills training, and ensuring that employees are not left without employment as businesses shift towards greener methods of operation.
One of the exhibitors, Amrish, talked about the work that he does going into schools to teach the importance of trees and planting them in the most important places in Bristol. This work and the responses he receives from school pupils inspires his photography.
It was not just the photographers who got a chance to shine at the intimate exhibition; our talented students showed off what they can do too. Hospitality and Catering students served canapes they had made, while Media Make-up students showcased their skills by designing and painting face designs inspired by the sustainability theme, and talking to guests about the designs they had created.
