Diversity, Social Responsibility and Sustainability

The international and diverse learning environment at Brunel Business School is reflected in our staff as well as in our student body. This environment not only enriches the student experience, but also prepares them to become future responsible managers who value and embrace diversity. At Brunel Brunel Business School we believe that higher education can transform people’s lives. By valuing and respecting the perspectives and contributions of all our colleagues and students we shall foster an inclusive culture of mutual respect and create an enriched environment that enables people to thrive and to realise their full potential. The rich cultural diversity of our community underpins our distinctive brand as an international, research- intensive Business School. Our vision places equality and diversity at the heart of all we do and inspires us to excel by working together to maximise the benefits of our diversity.

The world is becoming increasingly connected, which comes with opportunities, but also global challenges, such as environmental concerns and poverty. The world needs active responsible global citizens who are engaged in the world, knowledgeable about its diversity and passionate about change. Global citizenship requires awareness and understanding of the wider world and one’s own place within this world. Our research led teaching provides students with the relevant knowledge to address society’s challenges on a global scale. Brunel Business School is committed to contribute to solutions for the challenges that society faces and to help to change the lives of people around the world by bringing economic, social and cultural benefits.

Brunel University is firmly committed to enhancing our environmental management and performance through strategies, policies, risk management and procedures. ‘Sustainability’ is one of the core values of the University and aim to provide ‘an enabling environment’ - so that the campus infrastructure, facilities, and activities are managed, developed and monitored in a sustainable manner. We are responsible for continually improving our environmental performance, preventing pollution and protecting the local environment.

Brunel Business School cares for its social, economic and ecological environment through responsible and sustainable operational practices, which is reflected in the ‘greening’ of our own service delivery systems within the School. BBS is located in the Eastern Gateway building which is one of the newest buildings on campus. A biomass boiler in the Eastern Gateway provides the primary heating source, with a gas fired boiler plant providing additional heat when needed. The boiler is fuelled by carbon neutral wood pellets, up to 14 tonnes of which are stored in hoppers in the plant room. The pellets are fed to the boiler via a novel Archimedean screw conveyor. The carbon neutral pellets prevent 57 tonnes of Greenhouse gases entering the atmosphere per year. A rainwater harvesting system collects water from roof areas, which is then stored within the building and used to supply sanitary fittings. The rainwater harvesting system collects approximately 500,000 litres of water per year.

The creation of research for a sustainable future is an integral part of our mission. This passion in the pursuit of knowledge translates into research led teaching that engages and inspires. BBS aims to develop knowledge in the fields of Diversity, Social Responsibility and Sustainability and to share this knowledge through its academic research not only overcoming disciplinary boundaries, but also boundaries between academic research and corporate practice. The key to transcending gaps between academic research and corporate practice is to engage in knowledge transfer and collaborative research activities with companies and practitioners and to develop, share and disseminate knowledge on sustainable management practices and approaches.

Our research takes place in a number of research groups as well as in research centres, such as the Global-Lives Research Centre and the Centre for Entrepreneurship and Sustainability (CES).

Our research investigates issues such as:

• Greening data centres
• Green supply chain management
• Eliminating food waste and losses
• Humanitarian supply chain management for disaster relief
• Entrepreneurship and Sustainability
• Global lives
• Equality, Diversity and Inclusion at work

Brunel Hive is the growth and engagement platform at Brunel Business School, where we share our academic knowledge to benefit corporate practice. The key to transcending gaps between academic research and corporate practice is to engage in knowledge transfer and collaborative research activities with companies and practitioners and to develop, share and disseminate knowledge on sustainable management practices and approaches. Our mission is to engineer the accelerated growth of West London businesses, and indeed businesses across London. As part of this mission, we facilitate the internationalisation of London’s businesses in rapidly emerging economies across Asia, Africa and the Middle East. Brunel is a university for a changing world.

Powered by Brunel’s entrepreneurial ecosystem, Brunel Hive drives sustainable collaboration between world-class names, such as Ford, and ambitious scale-ups across the capital. Brunel is a forward-looking university in a new global world - a world where innovation and entrepreneurship shape our everyday existence.

Brunel Hive brings together seemingly unconnected businesses and opportunities to create long-term, sustainable value. One key aspect of this work involves connecting SMEs with the supply chains of large, global companies, through academic and market research. This work, together with many other engagement strategies, positions Brunel as a leading academic and business support institution in London and globally.

We look forward to developing and strengthening relationships with institutions across the globe.