Mean time for Greenwich

Last Thursday, 23 October, was a great night out in London for 10 from Leeds Met (and about 1,300 others). We were at the Grosvenor House Hotel in Park Lane for the Times Higher Awards. I’ve previously mentioned that Sounds Good was shortlisted for an award in the category for ‘outstanding contribution to innovation and technology’. I also wrote that my reaction to this news was “Wow, I’m amazed!” It’s not false modesty when I say that, although I’m very pleased with the way Sounds Good is going, I didn’t think for a moment it would win an award.

And so it proved. In the ‘innovation and technology’ category, the worthy winner was the University of Greenwich with a method of combining the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide with toxic waste to produce material which can be used in concrete blocks. That’s much more likely to ‘make a difference’ than Sounds Good. I didn’t meet any of the Greenwich folks, but I bet they had a mean time celebrating!

The Leeds Met contingent – which included several members of the Sounds Good team – enjoyed itself too. My greatest achievement on the night was to stay upright whilst ‘dancing’ to the Stones. Thanks to all who made the evening possible: JISC who fund the project; the team for their great work; my manager, Sally Brown, for nominating us; Leeds Met for paying for the trip.