Development of a 3 month student-specific communications plan using Smith and Taylor’s SOSTAC planning system to get the campus users – the people, helping to make the University of Bradford as environmentally friendly as possible. The brand name discussed in this assignment is the 'Ecoversity' Brand.

1. University Of
Bradford-
Sustainability
Communication
Done By:
Aanchal Saxena (UOB: 12032303)
Avanti Mukul (UOB: 12032274)
Blessy Stephen (UOB: 12032302)
Ramona Raduta (UOB: 12032305)
ABSTRACT
Development of a 3 month student-specific
communications plan using Smith and
Taylor’s SOSTACplanning systemto get the
campus users – the people, helping to make
the University of Bradford as
environmentally friendly as possible. The
brand name discussed in this assignmentis
the Ecoversity Brand.

2. 1
Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION 2
KEY MESSAGES
 FEEDBACK 2
 OVERHEATED SPACES: 3
 SWITCH OFF: 3
 WATER: 4
 WASTE: 4
 TRAVEL: 5
COMMUNICATION PLAN 5
SOSTAC IMPLEMENTATION 7
CONCLUSION: 8
REFERENCES: 9

3. 2
Introduction
Ecoversity:‘the Makinga difference together’. Ecoversity,isthe name giventoBradfordUniversity’s
program forembedding sustainable developmentacrossthe institution.Thisprogramme helpsin
creatingan efficient change in the University’s practices, behaviors,andnorms.Intermsof sustainability
performance, itinsertseducationforsustainable developmentandprovidinglearningexperience toall
students.Ethical andsocial responsibility,well-beingandcommunityengagementare mainprioritiesof
Ecoveristy. Mostimportantlyittendstoshiftthe institutional culturetowhere sustainable development
becomesmore like acustominsteadof exception.
Ecoversity wasestablishedin2005 withthe aim of tacklingsustainability,well-beingaswell associal and
economicfactors. Ittargets audiencessuchasstudents,staff etc. Overthe yearsEcoveristy programme
has accomplishedvariousawardssuchas“Energyand CIBSE awards”(national award) and“Sustainable
campusnetworkandsustainabilityawards”(international award),and alsoaccomplishedvarious
achievementssuch asBiodiversity:increasingnumberof habitatsinthe surroundingssuchaswoodland,
orchard etc.,Waste management:recyclingwaste etc.,EnergyManagement:loweringcarbonemissions
by 20%. Construction:bycreatingownsectorleadingsustainable buildingdesign.
(www.hughesmedia.co.uk,2014)
Key Messages
Let usfurtherlookindetail some of the keymessagesof ourplan.
FEEDBACK:
Feedbackisdefinedasa process inwhichoutputof an action isreturned, whichtherebymodifiesthe
nextaction.Feedbackisveryimportant especiallyintermsof educationandtrainingprogramsasit
helpsthe studentsorlearnerstoincrease theirpotential atdifferent learningstagesortrainingstages
and alsohelpthembyprovidingaclearguidance onhow toimprove theirworkor servicesetc. Itcan be
recognizedintermsof providinggrading,awardingmarksorpointsfora particulartask,negative
remarks:highlightingareasthatrequire improvement,pointingoutwhatiswrong,whichwill be useful
to studentsormembersasit will give themaguidance orclearidea.Positive remarks:suchas
appreciatingapiece of work,indicatingthe goodpointsetc. Itcan be informal suchas usual encounters
or discussionsbetweenstudentsandteachersandformal suchas writtenassessment
etc.(BusinessDictionary.com,2014)
In orderto improve the servicesandotherfacilitiesinUniversityof Bradford, propersurveysare and
discussionscanbeconductedthroughgroupmeetingsorononline.Withthe helpof online forums,
social networkingwebsite(Facebook),the universityblackboard,the institutionwebsite, the University
of Bradfordcan connect withtheirstudentsaswell asotherstaff membersandcan alsoreceive
immediate feedbackfromthem.Suchasassessmentof teachersorlevel of teaching,infrastructure and
otherfacilitiesandservicessuchasWi-Fi improvementsetc.

4. 3
OVERHEATED SPACES:
Academicsandadministrative buildingthatare requiredbythe University,whichare heatedduringthe
hoursof occupancyduringthe heatingperiod.Variousissuesrelatedtooverheatingof buildingsare
therefore addressedtothe University’sSustainable Coolingpolicy.In thisgeneration,there isdrastic
change in climate due toincrease inlevel of CarbonDioxide andothergassesandpollutionsetc.
In the above table,universitiesusuallysettheirtemperaturesaccordingtothe table duringheating
seasons,inorderto reduce the emissionof Carbondioxide,greenhouse gassesandotherpollutants.
Universitiesusuallysetthese temperatures duringworkinghours/daysexceptduringthe holidaysor
universitycloseddays.
Universityof Bradford can take these measuresinordertoreduce the impacton climate change and
expectthatthe membersandpupilsinthe universityshow tolerance andwearappropriate clothing.The
universityalsoexpectsmembersandpupilstoreportif there isexcessorless heating,ensure thatheat
iskeptinside the buildingbehindthe closeddoorsandwindowsandmostimportantlyensurethatthe
radiatorsand convectorsare not cloggedbyany furniture’soranyclothingmaterialsetc.
(Intranet.birmingham.ac.uk,2014)
SWITCH OFF:
Switchisanothermethodthateveryuniversitiesadoptinordertosave resourcesandreduce the
negative impactsonthe environment.Universityof Bradford canapply certainmeasuressuchas putting
up small signboardsoneveryswitchessaying “switchoff the lightsorfanafteruse or exitingthe rooms”
ineveryclassroom or the dorm rooms as a reminder.It’sthe universitydutyaswell asthe members
and studentsdutytocompulsoryfollow these rulesandregulationsinordertopreventoverheatingand
damagingthe environment. Ouruniversity canalsocreate variousmeetingsandpresentationsthereby
providingthe usefulfactsandfiguresof drawbacksof keepingthe switchesonforthe entire day.Thus,
thisprovide awarenessandencouragesthe studentsandmembersof the universitytoadopttothese
measuresforthe bettermentof the environment.

5. 4
WATER:
Water isone of the mostvaluable resourcesandiscritical forthe existence of anyliving race tosurvive.
Conservationof thisresource is extremelycentral foranyeco-friendlydrive tomake anoticeable
positive change on aUniversitycampus.Moreover,notonly doesthe transportation andtreatmentof
waterrequire alarge quantityof fundsbut alsoleadstooverutilizationof limitedenergyresources
affectingthe core of the ecological crisis.
Eventhoughcertainmeasureshave alreadybeentakenatthe Universityof Bradfordinthe pastit is
essential toupgrade the conservationof natural resourcesandaware the students,staff andvisitorsof
the small initiativesthatcanbe taken for the bettermentof the environmental sustainabilityof the
universitycampus.
Some of the basicproblemsfacedbythe Universityof Bradfordare leakingtapsandinefficientflushing
systemsthathinderthe functioningof bathroomsleadingtooverflowingcubicles. Inordertounravel
thisproblemthere are a lotof approachesthatthe managementandstudentscantake.One way to
grasp the attentionof the staff andstudentswhouse the washroomsona dailybasisare toiletdoor
campaigns.Bignoticeable postersthatdisplaysignsandsloganscomprisingof requestsforthe proper
use of tapsand flusheswillinstillafeelingof responsibility amongstthose whoreadthem.Furthermore,
postingpicturesonBradford’sUniversitypage onFacebookandothersocial medianetworks will help
bringthe issue to the awarenessof studentswhouse the internetonadailybasis.Thiswill helpsave
fundsanddecrease the costsassociated withsewerage aswell.
WASTE:
The path to campus sustainabilitystartswithproperwaste disposal and efficientwaste management
techniques. Forgenerationcountriesengagedinwrongwaysof waste managementsuchasburningor
not deemingthe issuerelevant.Howevertodaythere hasbeen agrowingconcernto supportproper
waste managementaroundvariouscountriesaswell asmicrounitssuchas homes,institutionsand
firms. Some of the problemscausedbythe studentsandmanagementof the university are
contaminatingthe environmentbylitteringthe campusaswell asproblemsincompostingandrecycling
of wastes.
One way toconquerthisproblemis byintroducingseparate garbage binsformetals,plasticsandbio-
degradable wastes.Thishelpsinthe reductionof costswhile compostingthe fastmaterialsforthe
universityaswell ashelpsinthe recyclingof wastesthatare fitforpurpose.
Anotherwayis by engaginginthe ThinkGreenCampusModel whichencouragescampusestoimprove
theiroverall environmental performance.Thisprogramencompassesenvironmental expertstowork
towardsand enhance the campus’spre-establishedeco-friendlyapproachesaswell asmakesefforts
towardssettingupcampaignsandencouragesstudentstothinkina differentdimensioninrelationto
waste managementanddisposal.

6. 5
Lastly, visual communicationsuchas big colorful attractive banners andshortvideoclips enlightening
the studentaboutthe detrimental impactsof poorwaste disposal.
TRAVEL:
The Universityof Bradfordcampushas affiliateditself to anextremelysmart andinnovative initiation
knownas the smart move travel thatfollowsthe mottoof ‘makingsustainabilitywork’ Thismove
highlightsthe importanceof makingtravellingsustainable,i.e.loweringthe carbonemissionsinorder
to conserve resourcesforthe future generationwhile satisfyingthe needsof the currentgeneration.
It mainlyfocusesonreducingthe pollutionbyusingothermodesof transportationsuchascyclingto
college,publictransportandalsocar parkingfacilities.Notonlywill thiscurbthe problemof pollution
but will alsohelpinthe reductionof the University’scarbonfootprint. Inthe firstphase of thisprogram
Bradfordsuccessfullymanagedtofollowcertainpoliciessuchasreductionincar use for bothstaff and
studentsbya significantamount. Beingapart of sucha programmainlyfocusesonthe reductionof
carbon emissionsbyfollowinga4 yearplanfrom 2010-1014
Some of the keyfactorsthat needtobe focusedonduringthistime are:
 Improve the qualityof the transportation.Move easilyandreduce the costsincurredwhile
movingfromone site toanother.
 Decrease carbonemissionswhiletravellinganddiscourage redundantjourneys.
 Become an inspirationforgreentravel andimprovecommutingprocedureswithinthe campus
and amidstotherinstitutions.
The Communication Plan
The nextimportantstepthatfollowsthe keymessagesisthe planwhichwe are tryingtocommunicate.
Let usfurtheranalyze the reasonforthe same,followedbyourplanandthe SOSTACimplementation.
There isa veryurgentneedtosafeguardourenvironment,withoutwhichwe willnotbe able toleada
healthyandhappylife.Inordertohave a brightertomorrow itisbetterto start today.Our university
has alreadystartedthe act of protectingthe environment.Accordingtothe latestupdate the university
has beenable toreduce carbonemissionsby30% and reducingwaste tolandfill by80%.Althoughthis
resultisverymotivatingthere isstill alottoaccomplishtowardscreatinga betterenvironment.
Our nextgoal isto get the campususersto become as environmentfriendlyaspossible.Ecoversityisour
brand name giventothe agendaof creatingthe awarenessinthe mindsof the people tobecome more
environmentfriendly.Ourmessage is“Youare a part of your environment,isyourenvironmenthelping
youtowardssuccessor isit holdingyouback?”.Oursloganto be usedis “Makinga difference together”.
We are aimingto control the energyconsumptionatthe Universityandalsouse resourcesina
sustainable way.Thisrelatestoenergyandgas.We intendtoreduce electricityconsumptionby5%and

7. 6
gas by 15%. Thisis veryimportantbecause the reductioninenergyconsumptioncanhelptoreduce the
impactof thison climate whichwouldotherwise leadtoincrease intemperature of the environment.
Thiscan leadtofloods,droughtsetc.Thisreductioninenergyconsumptionisveryimportantatthe
Universitybecause the studentsandstaff will be helpingtoprotectthe future economy.Cuttingdown
on energy,waterandgas will helptomeetthe reductiontargetsof the country.
We nowhave a systemcalledthe Edd:e circuitlevel energymonitoringsystemwhichenablesto
measure energyusage andalsohelpstomaintainthe traditional energymanagementapplications.The
firstsystemwasinstalledinthe School of HealthStudies-Universityof Bradford.The programeducated
the studentsandstaff aboutshiftingtoa sustainable new buildingandhow theycanmake use of energy
inthat buildingmore efficiently.The programwasa huge successand wonthe 2011 EnergyAwards.
What we intendtodo furtheristo transformall the normal lightingstoLED lightingswithanautomatic
control systemsothat the lightsare not workingunlessitisrequired. Therefore itisveryimportantto
conveythismessage tothe students,staff andthe visitorsof the University.
In orderto conveythismessage aneffective communicationplanisrequired.There are twotypesof
communication –one thatinfluencesthe individualandthe otherthatinfluencesthe public.Inthiscase
we needtoutilize boththe waysof communication.We have chosentwomodesof communication.The
firstisthroughmediaand the secondisthroughinterpersonal advertising.Mediaadvertisinginvolves
advertisingonthe University’swebsiteandonthe University’sFacebookpage.Thiswillreachawider
audience bothlocallyandinternationally.Thiswillhelptocreate awarenessinall the citieswhere
Universityof Bradfordislocated.Inter- personal communicationinvolveshandingoutflyersandalso
publishingthe advertisementof the campaigninthe University’smonthlymagazine.Anotheroptionis
to advertise the campaignonthe University’sbillboards.Althoughthese methodscaninvolve huge
costs,an approximate value of £20,000, theywill be effective. Manypeople canbe reachedthroughthis
campaignas we are advertisinginall possible waysthe Universitycanmanage.
Afterdecidingthatwe are goingto communicate ourcampaigncomesthe part of implementation.This
includesatimeframe forthe campaign.Thiscampaignwill lastforthree months.Inordertohave a
successful campaign,there canbe campaignleadersappointedfordifferentdepartmentsinthe
University.Thiswillhelptoreacha wideraudience faster.Selectingvolunteersbythe campaignleader
to visithousesnearthe Universityisalsoanoptiontoprotectand secure the environmentof the
University.Onthe otherhandimplementationof thisplanalsomeanstoconveywhatshouldbe done to
carry out thiscampaignsuccessfully.Certaininitiativesthatcanbe takenare- switchoff all electrical
itemswhenevernotnecessary,switchoff lightsthatare notinproperworkingconditionsastheyutilize
more energyinthissituationandneverleave the airconditioningonwhennotrequiredasitusesthree
timesthe electricityascomparedtoa normallyventilatedroom.Therefore,throughproperplanning
and properinitiativesthiscampaignwill be ahuge success.

8. 7
SOSTAC Implementation
In SOSTAC,there are 3 resourcesneededforcommunicationplanning.There are the 3Ms: Man whichis
the humanresource,Moneywhichtalksaboutthe budget,andMinuteswhichinvolvestimeallocatedto
complete aprojectplan.The firstpart of SOSTACisthe situationanalysis,andthatmustanswertothe
question‘whereare we now?‘The secondpartis Objectivesandthisisabout‘where dowe wantto be?’
afterwhichcomesthe Strategyand ‘how do we getthere?’The fourthone isabout Tactics andthis
involvesthe detailsof the strategy,andthencomesActionwhereinplansmustbe puttowork.Lastlyit
isthe Control thatmust be able to measure,monitorandreview whathasbeendone.
Situation analysis
As faras UK isconcerned,itisa democraticcountrysoeverybodyhasthe freedomof expression.With
thispolitical matter,itwill helpusadvertise ourcommunicationplanjustthe waywe wantto,without
any restrictions.The economyisgrowing,therefore we mustbe careful of how muchwe spendanddo it
insuch way thatwe will be helpingthe economyof the countrybyourcampaign.We woulddistribute
flyerstoeachstudentand make postsinopenplaces,aswell aspostingitonline onFacebook,Twitte r,
Instagram, etc. so that it will be more sociallyspreadwiththe helpof the new technologies.Our
communicationplanisenvironmental friendlytothe societyandourtarget ismostlystudentsof
universities.
Objectives
Our maingoal isto be able to make younggeneration,studentslikeustoprotectthe environment
more and care for the nature.We alsowant our campusin the universitytobe more environmental
friendly.Asof now,withthe planforprotectingthe environment,ouruniversitywasable toreduce
carbon emissionsby30%and to reduce waste tolandfill by80%,butwithour campaignwe want all
studentstohelpuspromote thisideaandcare for the environment.
Strategy
As we statedearlier,the wayof advertisementsthatwe usedare mediaandinterpersonal.Media
advertisinginvolvesadvertisingonthe University’swebsite andonthe University’sFacebookpage which
will reacha wideraudience bothlocallyandinternationallyanditwill helptocreate awarenessinall the
citieswhere Universityof Bradfordislocated,while the inter- personalcommunicationinvolveshanding
out flyersandalsopublishingthe advertisementof the campaigninthe University’smonthlymagazine
so that eachand everypersonwhoseesitcanalso contribute andhelpus.
Tactics
If we wouldgetsome sponsorsforourcampaignit wouldbe great,butas faras of now we onlyuse the
typesof advertisementsthatare available forustouse.There isa periodof time thatwe use advertising
such as media,andanotherperiodof time inwhichwe wouldbe usinginterpersonalcommunications.
These twowouldnotbe at the same time sothat it will notcollapse witheachother.We wouldbe using

9. 8
mediaadvertisingonlyfromOctoberuntil November,andwe wouldbe distributingflyersandmake
postersfrommidof Novemberuntil December.
October November December Costs
Media
Advertising
(Facebook,
Twitter,etc.)
X X X $10,000
Interpersonal
Communication
(flyers,
billboards,etc.)
X X $15,000
Action
We wouldbe takingseriousactioninmakingourplanworkand insucceedingwithourcampaign.First
of all,we wouldbe dividingourbudgetsothatwe wouldnotwaste moneyonunnecessarythingsand
make use of eachpoundright.We wouldapproximatelyhave touse around$25 thousandand within
thisamountof money,we will make sure thatitwill be correctly.
Control
To make sure that our planis rightand itwill be successful,we needtohave control overitand be able
to measure whatwe are doingand checkwhetherwhatwe have done until now broughtusclose to our
goal or not,and see if whatwe have done so far isthe bestthat we coulddo. If we will see studentsthat
theycare for ourenvironmentandthattheywill take care of the campus and help usinmakingitmore
environmental friendly,thenthisishowwe canbe sure our campaignwas goodand successful.
CONCLUSION:
Thisis notan area where people have directpersonal control,hence the University needstodevelop
goodmodesof communicationandmarketingtechniquestoconveyandsell theirideastothe staff and
students.The staff needstotake the firststepandact as role modelsfortheirstudentbase encouraging
themto adoptthe same approach.Followingagreenplanforthe Universitycampusisnotonly
sustainable butstylish.Havinganefficientcommunicationplanandfollowingthe SOSTACmodel will
helpinthe implementationand developagreen,eco-friendlycampuspromotingthe needforhealthy
and happyindividuals.

10. 9
REFERENCES:
 BusinessDictionary.com, (2014). What is feedback? Definition and meaning. [online]
Available at:
http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/feedback.html#ixzz30lUmYS00 [Accessed
22 Apr. 2014].
 Intranet.birmingham.ac.uk, (2014). [online] Available at:
https://intranet.birmingham.ac.uk/hr/documents/public/hsu/information/workplaces/Heati
ng-Standards.pdf. [Accessed 14 Apr. 2014].
 www.hughesmedia.co.uk, h. (2014). University of Bradford - Ecoversity. [online]
Eauc.org.uk. Available at: http://www.eauc.org.uk/university_of_bradford_ecoversity
[Accessed 4 Apr. 2014].
 Www2.le.ac.uk, (2014). 1. What is feedback? — University of Leicester. [online]
Available at: http://www2.le.ac.uk/offices/ld/resources/writing/feedback_five/1.-what-is-
feedback-1 [Accessed 19 Apr. 2014].