Common Room Much of the college's social and sporting life is coordinated through the
Common Room, of which all students, fellows and staff are members. The Common Room's elected executive committee oversees activities and works closely with college officials to represent its members' interests. The Common Room organises numerous events during term time. Particular highlights include termly bops, which are among the largest student-run parties in Oxford. Operating across two floors and outside areas, the bops are themed parties open to members of other colleges. The biggest bop of the year is usually the matriculation bop ("sexy
sub-fusc” theme) which usually attracts a queue far in excess of the 450 person capacity. In 2015, 750 people enjoyed the event at any given time, and more than 950 people attended it throughout the night. Other social events include smaller college parties, movie nights, cake baking, cheese and wine tasting and lectures.
Clubs and societies Like all colleges, Linacre has many active sports teams and its members also represent the university in various sports. Active societies and clubs include the Linacre Music Society, Linacre College Cricket Club (The Honey Badgers), Linacre Recreational Football Society, Linacre Ladies that Lift weightlifting society, Linacre Yoga Society, Linacre Green Society, and Linacre Intercultural Society and Linacre Photo Society, among others.
Boat Club Linacre Boat Club (or
LBC) is the
rowing club for members of Linacre and
Nuffield colleges, both in the
University of Oxford. Founded in 1968, LBC shares a
boathouse with the college boat clubs of
Lady Margaret Hall,
Trinity and
Magdalen. As both Linacre and Nuffield are graduate colleges, LBC is one of the few rowing clubs on the
Isis that caters solely to
postgraduate students. Linacre competes in a wide variety of races, both on the Isis (including the
Torpids and
Summer Eights) and elsewhere, including the
Head of the River Race on the Thames at
London. Since 2022 Linacre has organised the
Tamesis Regatta, a series of side-by-side races held over four days for novice crews. From time-to-time the club uses the
scallop shells of Linacre college, which are themselves taken from the arms of the prominent
Linacre family of northern
Derbyshire and southern
Yorkshire, and represent the completion of the
Camino pilgrimage to
Santiago. The colours of the blades likely originate in the golden (
or) crowns of the old (pre-1988) arms of Linacre college and its black (
sable) shield. Between the college's foundation and the creation of its boat club in 2023, members of
Reuben College also rowed with LBC.
Sustainability and ethics The college has a strong environmental ethos and has gained a reputation as the 'green' college of Oxford through a number of environmental initiatives over the years including an official sustainability policy. Linacre has been ranked greenest college by
OUSU in a number of years. The common room executive hosts an environment officer and there is an active green society since 2007 as well as an allotment society. Linacre's Abraham building won Green Building of the Year 1996 In 2010 Linacre committed to the 10:10 campaign to reduce carbon emissions 10% that year. It has more recently set a target of 40% reduction over ten years until 2020. A
photovoltaic system was installed on the roofs of Abraham and Griffiths Buildings in 2011. In 2016 Linacre invested £100,000 into the Low Carbon Hub, a renewable energy social enterprise. Linacre was the first Oxford college to achieve fairtrade status in September 2006. In 2016 Linacre also hosted a seminar series on the sustainability and ethics of banking. Linacre runs two major public lectures each year:
Linacre Lectures on the Environment Throughout its history the college has run an annual series of Linacre Lectures open to non-members, the first of which were given by
Brian Aldiss,
Robert Graves and
Isaiah Berlin. Since 1991 these public lectures have focused on environmental challenges. • 2017: John Knox, "Global Threats to Environmental Human Rights Defenders". • 2014:
Michael Oppenheimer, "Migration, Interconnection, Conflict: Emergent Issues and Indirect Impacts in IPCC's Fifth Assessment" • 2013: Mike Gidney,
David Heath, and Gordon McGranahan on "Food Security and Sustainability" • 2012:
Carl Folke,
Robert Costanza, and others on "Environmental Governance and Resilience"
Tanner Lectures on Human Values The college also holds the
Tanner Lectures on Human Values. • 2025:
Volker Turk, "Cooling a Planet on Fire". • 2019:
Strobe Talbott, "A President for Dark Times: the Age of Reason Meets the Age of Trump". • 2018:
Abhijit Banerjee and
Esther Duflo, "Economics for the Human Race". • 2017:
George F. R. Ellis, "On the Origin and Nature of Values". • 2016:
Shirley Williams, "The Value of Europe and European Values". • 2015:
Peter Singer, "From Moral Neutrality to Effective Altruism: The Changing Scope and Significance of Moral Philosophy". • 2014:
Shami Chakrabarti, "Human Rights as Human Values". • 2013:
Michael Ignatieff, "Representation and Responsibility: Ethics and Public Office". ==Notable members==