TORONTO, April 19, 2010 -- In the lead-up to Earth Day 2010, York University is releasing a campus-wide report on sustainability, with a strategy for reducing its ecological footprint that goes beyond conventional approaches to being green.
The university will increase its focus on the social aspects of sustainability by building better connections with the surrounding community, says the report, officially released today.
“Sustainability is about more than reducing, re-using and recycling,” says Jennifer Foster, Assistant Professor of Environmental Studies and Chair of the President’s Sustainability Council, which authored the report. “We don’t want to be a predominantly commuter-campus. We want to evolve into a resource for local residents and draw on their talents in turn – that’s sustainability in its best form. York is already leading the way with innovations like its satellite campus at Jane and Finch, and we want to continue building policies, programs and practices that foster sustainable livelihoods beyond the campus boundaries.”
The report proposes programs to attract qualified applicants for part-and full-time employment from communities-in-need surrounding York. The university also aims to improve access to its libraries, sport complexes and labs, including community-use days for specified facilities.
Organized under four sustainability themes – organizational structure, curriculum, social justice and human rights, and campus operations and development – the report’s other recommendations include:
- creating a community of campus sustainability ambassadors
- including sustainability in more courses and academic programs
- developing a York-specific green building and renovation standard, in part to allow York to exceed LEED standards
- preserving and enhancing York’s four substantially-sized woodlots and natural features
- setting policies and practices, like a no-idling rule, to reduce vehicle pollution
- supporting more sustainable practices in campus food service operations.
The council also lists practical ideas for making operations less wasteful, such as:
- double-sided printing to reduce paper consumption
- reusing office furniture if possible and, if not, selling or donating to the York community and charities
- creating more student common space with access to microwaves, water-bottle refilling stations and sinks
- developing a plan for protecting and enhancing York's natural landscape
“We are taking a coordinated approach in demonstrating to our students, faculty and staff that sustainability is important. It is being woven into the fabric of our institution,” says York President & Vice-Chancellor Mamdouh Shoukri.
York already has initiatives underway to cut energy consumption and reduce waste on campus – efforts for which it was lauded with the highest ranking in Ontario on the 2010 College Sustainability Report Card. On Earth Day, it will launch its Zero Waste program, which will divert 65 per cent of campus waste from landfills by May 2013.
The university’s Unplug initiative has decreased campus energy use dramatically. It led to a 3.55 per cent reduction in energy consumption over the Family Day weekend amounting to 22,729 kilowatt hours – the equivalent of preventing 16.3 metric tons of carbon dioxide from entering the atmosphere. Data was collected using York’s new energy consumption monitoring system, which tracks consumption building-by-building. A website allowing students and staff to see their electricity use is forthcoming.
“What we’ve done so far is great, but we’re saying we can do even better,” says Foster. “A university is like a small city. York has 90 buildings, 1,700 daily public bus visits and two forthcoming subway stations. It has its own energy co-generation facility, more than 40 food service outlets and numerous significant natural features. The university is also a major employer in the Greater Toronto Area. There’s enormous potential for impact on the environmental and economic health of the GTA, and beyond,” she says.
Shoukri created the President’s Sustainability Council in the fall of 2008 to advise him on York’s sustainability initiatives. The 15-member council is made up of administrators, faculty and students. York could begin implementing their recommendations as soon as September. Read the full report here.
For more information on York’s ongoing efforts to reduce its energy consumption and its overall ecological footprint, visit: http://www.yorku.ca/yorkwise/index.html .
York University is the leading interdisciplinary research and teaching university in Canada. York offers a modern, academic experience at the undergraduate and graduate level in Toronto, Canada’s most international city. The third largest university in the country, York is host to a dynamic academic community of 50,000 students and 7,000 faculty and staff, as well as 200,000 alumni worldwide. York’s 10 Faculties and 28 research centres conduct ambitious, groundbreaking research that is interdisciplinary, cutting across traditional academic boundaries. This distinctive and collaborative approach is preparing students for the future and bringing fresh insights and solutions to real-world challenges. York University is an autonomous, not-for-profit corporation.
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Media Contact:
Melissa Hughes, Media Relations, York University, 416 736 2100 x 22097, mehughes@yorku.ca
