Ed Dunn

I graduated from Leeds University in 2007 with a Masters in Environmental Consultancy. The course was relatively new when I was an undergraduate and the main attraction to me was the chance to complete the consultancy project. I still believe that this was one of the most valuable experiences of my career to date as it gave me the opportunity to put my theoretical knowledge into practice almost immediately. I feel that when so many graduates are leaving University with very little work experience and even fewer employment opportunities this course still offers a chance to get ahead of the game and provides valuable real-life work experience in the environmental sector.

Shortly after graduating I was recruited by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office into their Sustainable Operations Support Team. A significant part of my role is to ensure that the FCO are able to deal with and perform against the requirements enforced by central Government to reduce their carbon footprint. Whether this is establishing a comprehensive data collection process for meeting our 10:10 commitment, managing the FCO’s ISO14001 accreditation system, or providing advice to the England Football FIFA World Cup bids Team to ensure a sustainable legacy after hosting the 2018 World Cup, I am pleased to say that I’m still using the skills and knowledge I learned during my masters degree on a daily basis to help the FCO make a more informed decision about its approach to sustainability and carbon management.