More than 190 CAT graduates celebrate their graduation
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On 20 July we celebrated another impressive graduating class, with CAT graduates and their guests joining us online and on-site for Graduation.
On the day we held two ceremonies celebrating those who received awards from our MSc and MArch courses including Green Building, Sustainability and Behaviour Change and Sustainability and Ecology Sustainability and Adaptation, Sustainability and Adaptation in the Built Environment, Sustainability and Adaptation Planning, Sustainability in Energy Provision and Demand Management, Sustainable Food and Natural Resources and MArch in Sustainable Architecture.
Over 190 graduates this year received degree certificates and awards from our Graduate School, where they have been developing the skills and knowledge to rise to the climate and biodiversity emergency. The day was a wonderful opportunity for families, staff, and friends to commend their hard work and studies at CAT.
Changemakers for the future
This year we were delighted to be joined by Derek Walker, who is the second-ever Future Generations Commissioner. Wales is the only country in the world with a Well-being of Future Generations Act and it is enshrined in law that we all need to work together to improve our environment for people, for planet, for now, and for our future. The work of the commission is very much aligned with CAT’s values and mission to create changemakers.
During his keynote speech he described the importance of the act in protecting and promoting the needs of future generations. He highlighted how CAT’s pioneering work in Wales and around the globe in educating people to address the climate and biodiversity emergency has a lasting legacy, especially through those who study with us.
“This is such an important day for you as graduates, and it’s a privilege to share it with you. CAT is such an amazing place and a real asset for Wales, it has been doing pioneering work on addressing the climate and biodiversity emergencies for decades and the experience you as graduates have had here is a really special and important one to your future, to ours in Wales, and globally.”
With graduates from all our postgraduate courses in attendance, some are already working to create change, from consultancy roles researching retrofit skills to working in local authorities and councils on climate projects, with others building on existing careers or making plans for what they’ll do next.
- Charlotte Ravenscroft studied Sustainability and Adaptation and recently published an impactful report which began as part of her CAT thesis. The report ‘Ready for Retrofit? Analysis of local skills improvement plans in England’ was published by Gatsby Foundation in June.
- Rachel Geary graduated from Sustainability and Behaviour Change is continuing to work with fellow student Rosie Trevillion, rolling out the ‘Personal and Planetary wellbeing course” they tested during their dissertations. Designed as a transformative behaviour change intervention, that combines nature-connection with Indigenous wisdom, the course has proved very effective. The pair are currently developing an online version that can be offered to a wider audience, to run alongside in-person sessions.
- Joe Sanchez has gone on to further research, working as a Green Infrastructure Research Assistant at University of East London’s Sustainability Research Institute. His work follows on from urban greening and sustainability themes explored in his dissertation and his PhD will delve further into associations between urban ecology, environmental justice and mobility.
- Maria Sanchez who studied Green Building with us recently came back to support the Sustainable Materials module week last month. Although she trained as an architect, her transformational journey studying at CAT allowed her to understand and love sustainable raw materials including earth and how it can be used as a building material.
- Rhiannon Munro’s time at CAT, including a lecture on Climate Anxiety, led her along with fellow CAT students, to create a collective called ‘Casglu Climate Cafes’ which help nurture emotional resilience in the face of climate change. They will be running climate cafes later in the Summer at the Greenman Festival.
Graduate achievements
Congratulations to graduates who also received further prizes on the day including certificates for ‘Achieving High Marks Overall’ on their course and for ‘Outstanding Dissertation Submission’. Graduates were awarded their prizes by Professor Jason Kirby, from Liverpool John Moores University, one of CAT’s validating partners, and CAT trustee Andrew Pearman.
The day came to a close with a buffet and band at CAT, allowing the graduates to celebrate their achievements into the evening.
Keep in touch!
As Co-CEO Eileen Kinsman said in closing her remarks during the ceremonies:
“We often speak about the CAT family, and through your studies in the Graduate School, you’ve become an integral part of it. Receiving your certificates today doesn’t signify leaving CAT; instead, it marks your entry into an extraordinary network of passionate, committed, and knowledgeable individuals dedicated to collaboratively building a better world. So, please stay connected with us, with each other, and with graduates from other cohorts. Keep us updated on your activities, the interesting and important projects you’re involved in, and let us know how we can support you.”
A big congratulations from us all at CAT to those graduating from the Graduate School of the Environment this year and best of luck in your future endeavours!
GRADUATE SCHOOL OF THE ENVIRONMENT
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