Biodiversity

Glasgow Caledonian University is committed to embedding sustainability into every aspect of its operations and that includes exploring opportunities for enhancing biodiversity in its campus in Glasgow city centre.

The campus is a highly developed, compact seven-hectare campus with 15 buildings, built on the former site of Buchanan Street Railway Station, predominantly after the mid-1970s (as shown in this presentation). There is free public access to all green spaces and open spaces on the Campus. 7% of the campus is available as soft planting and the University has sought to achieve a planting scheme that emphasises colour and biodiversity. You can learn more about our planting scheme in the University`s Planting Guide and biodiversity initiatives below.

The Biodiversity Plan

Here you will find documents that set out the University's aspirations for enhancing biodiversity on University grounds.

• Biodiversity Plan (2023)
• Biodiversity Plan (2023) Implementation Document (May 2024 update)

You can help us enhance biodiversity on campus by participating in our biodiversity monitoring project through iNaturalist. Please click here for detailed instructions on how to install and use the iNaturalist app and join the University's Biodiversity Project.

Birds on campus

Despite its city center location, The University campus is home to a number of different bird species such as blackbird, blue tit, coal tit, lesser black-backed gull, goldfinch, robin and many more.

You can read more about the birds on campus, nest boxes as well as the study on monitoring birds breeding from the Birds on the University Campus Report.

Trees on campus

Glasgow Caledonian University`s Forest for the Future and Urban Orchard was established on 28 November 2019 as a collaboration between the University’s Sustainability Officer and third-year students on the School of Computing, Engineering and Built Environment’s Environmental Management course to plant over 100 trees as part of the Woodland Trust’s the Big Climate Fightback.

The following broad-leafed and fruit trees were planted: bird cherry; downy birch; aspen; rowan; silver birch; dog rose; field maple; apple; cherry; pear; plum and quince. The trees were selected to require minimal maintenance (for example, no watering) and suit the Glasgow climate.

Students and staff at GCU were invited to either plant a tree at the University or at home and by the end of the day, 120 broad-leaf trees and 20 fruit trees had been planted across the GCU Campus and Caledonian Court.

It's hoped that the Forest for the Future and Urban Orchard will make GCU’s campus greener and healthier by enhancing tree cover and providing additional habitat for local wildlife and pollinators.