How director Robert Hopkins is inspiring future generations, enhancing student learning and improving their employability and skills

This industry-into-academia initiative aims to utilise the knowledge and experience of the VP to enhance student learning as well as improve the employability and skills of UK graduates.

Rob Hopkins is a director and head of sustainability at our practice who leads on our long-established commitment to sustainability and is now 18 months into his Visiting Professorship at Cardiff Metropolitan University.

How it all started

Cardiff Metropolitan University approached Rob to participate in the scheme which sees him work with the university for three years and commit to 12 days a year. He joined the university in the 21/22 academic year and together they identified areas of improvement to the curriculum.

The result was a carbon literacy programme that is currently being embedded across the entire university not just the School of Art and Design. Freshers Week became Carbon Literacy Week! Many courses now have carbon literacy credits attached to them as a result. Rob has also supported the training of staff within the School of Art and Design to become carbon literacy trainers.

Several incredible projects have sprung up across the university as a result of his contribution, including:

• A Low Carbon Materials Library for Wales with a mobile library outreach programme, which also involves Maths and Science students who are already beginning to develop apps and coding around the library.
  
• A fascinating research project with fashion students to explore different plants and how they can extract natural dyes from them for sustainable fashion. By growing these plants in gardens on the university grounds, students can see the source of the different colors used in clothing, connecting the dyes to nature. An automated robot has also been developed to automate the weeding and feeding of plants!
  
• Ceramics students exploring a particular glaze, titanium dioxide, that has the properties of attracting small particulate matter. Not only does this develop pieces that are decorative but can actually improve the air quality in a room.

Enhancing student learning

Another key part of Rob’s involvement was reaching students from a more diverse socioeconomic background, to ensure an equal and enriching learning experience for all, further preparing them as they embark on life after university.

He’s aiming for a legacy beyond his three-year tenure and is putting a framework in place, so this work continues once his time is over.

If you’re interested in reading more about how we strive to inspire future generations by sharing our insights, knowledge and experiences, visit our social value page here.

You can also find out more about Rob by visiting his profile here.