#8 University of Bradford

West Yorkshire, UK

The University of Bradford is powering ahead with green initiatives; achieving an Outstanding BREEAM rating - the highest ever BREEAM Outstanding rating for a university - for the Bright Building (or the re:centre), and decreasing its carbon footprint by 35% since a decade ago.

The Bright Building exterior

The building has implemented many environmental features including natural ventilation, photovoltaics and air source heat pumps, high levels of insulation and biological materials such as hemp and timber in the basis of the main structure.

The design was created with a modern concept in mind, ensuring there are a variety of flexible areas that allow for a multitude of work practices. With no fixed desk spaces or computer clusters, this provides more areas for creative thinking and promotes collaboration and exchanging ideas.

The Bright Building interior

Additionally, the university over the last decade has reduced its utility spend and saved over £7m, keeping in mind that the same market has shown prices augment 85% during the same time period.