TORONTO, Monday, April 22, 2019 – York University has become one of Canada’s Greenest Employers for the seventh straight year, gaining national recognition for reducing annual electrical consumption by 34,730,786 kWh, saving $5 million in utilities every year, and recycling 3,705,780 kg of waste.

“I am proud that York has been honoured as one of Canada’s Greenest Employers again, pushing us to set new goals and continually improve,” said Carol McAulay, vice-president, finance & administration. “York’s vision is to be a world leader in sustainability, a living lab, an incubator for sustainability leaders, a disrupter of old ways of thinking and a catalyst for transformative approaches that make an impact. Congratulations to all community members who have contributed to our collective efforts to make this great achievement possible.”

As a leader in sustainability, York has made progress with several environmentally friendly initiatives that alter the footprint of campus buildings, such as five green roofs, the use of PV solar panels, the collection of rainwater, a solar powered electric vehicle charging station, and the LEED Gold certified Bergeron Centre for Engineering Excellence. Four more buildings are also LEED certified, including the Schulich School of Business’ new Rob and Cheryl McEwen building which is one of the most sustainable university buildings in North America.

York’s sustainability highlights:
Named by Times Higher Ed as a global impact and innovation leader – 5 in Canada and 26 in the world, based on the United Nations sustainable development goals;

• Successfully reduced the use of single occupant vehicles to the Keele campus from 70 per cent to 20 per cent;
• York’s ZeroWaste program diverts 68 per cent of waste from landfills;
• EcoCampus in Costa Rica is next to the largest rainforest ecosystem in Centre America;
• York offers more than 500 courses that relate to environmental and sustainability studies;
• 22 kilometres of walking paths and more than 200 gardens, including the 2,000-sq-ft Maloca Community Garden; and
• Water refill stations across the University replaced disposable water bottles.

 

Read more about York’s commitment to sustainability: http://sustainability.info.yorku.ca/

York University champions new ways of thinking that drive teaching and research excellence. Our students receive the education they need to create big ideas that make an impact on the world. Meaningful and sometimes unexpected careers result from cross-disciplinary programming, innovative course design and diverse experiential learning opportunities. York students and graduates push limits, achieve goals and find solutions to the world’s most pressing social challenges, empowered by a strong community that opens minds. York U is an internationally recognized research university – our 11 faculties and 25 research centres have partnerships with 200+ leading universities worldwide. Located in Toronto, York is the third largest university in Canada, with a strong community of 53,000 students, 7,000 faculty and administrative staff, and more than 300,000 alumni. York U's fully bilingual Glendon Campus is home to Southern Ontario's Centre of Excellence for French Language and Bilingual Postsecondary Education.

Background:
Canada’s Greenest Employers is part of the Canada's Top 100 Employers project managed by Mediacorp Canada Inc. Learn more about the full list of winners.

 Media contact:
Gloria Suhasini, York University Media Relations, 416-736-2100 ext. 22094, suhasini@yorku.ca