Sustainability News

Sept 15: Green Tours exhibit Western's most efficient buildings

This fall, Facilities Management and EnviroWestern have once again teamed up to offer the Green Tours featuring Western's LEED compliant buildings. The free, two hour long walking tour begins in the newly renovated McIntosh Gallery, travels to Stevenson Hall, takes the underground passage to the Claudette MacKay-Lassonde Pavilion and on to the new Richard Ivey School of Business building on Western Road.

Participants will get all the behind-the-scenes details that make these buildings tops in efficiency and environmental design. < Take the tour >

August 29: Western earns STARS Silver rating

This summer, graduate students from Western's Master of Environment & Sustainability (MES) program joined Facilities Management to oversee the completion of Western's first ever Sustainability Tracking, Assessment & Rating System (STARS®) report. The self-reporting tool is specifically geared towards colleges and universities to measure/benchmark sustainability performance. STARS® was developed by AASHE with broad participation from the higher education community. < See our report | About STARS >

June 28: Townsend fills new environmental position

This position is charged with creating, implementing and sustaining a program designed to achieve savings while contributing to environmental protection by directing focus to energy efficient practices and behaviours throughout Western’s facilities. Read more in Western News' Campus Digest section online < more >

May 24: Western Walking Tour map is available online

Western is the nation's most attractive campus and now you can enjoy some its lesser known features with the recently released self-guided Walking Tour. The tour cuts a path through campus that includes green attractions, such as, the many gardens and naturalized areas, LEED buildings, and relevant green research locales. Hard copies will be available from Physical Plant upon request (bwatso5@uwo.ca) - the online version is available for download now [PDF].

The tour was created from a partnership between members of the Geography Department, Graphic Services, and Physical Plant Division.

Mar 7: Nutrition Month celebrates from field to table

In celebration of March as Nutrition Month, the Dietitians of Canada student branch at Brescia University College is holding several events to promote this year's theme of "Celebrate food ... from field to table!" < more >

Renowned speaker Wade Davis visits Western

Friday, March 11 at 6:00 p.m.
Natural Science, Rm. 145

Eight student organizations have come together to bring Wade Davis to campus for a speech on Friday, March 11 at 6:00 p.m. in Nat. Sci. room 145. Wade Davis is an explorer-in-residence from the National Geographic, best-selling author, anthropologist from Harvard University, TED speaker, and an active voice for the environment, all cultures and human diversity. For more information and tickets visit http://wadedavisatuwo.com/

Jan. 17: Western Green Tours

Physical Plant and EnviroWestern have teamed up to offer guided tours of the campus' most efficient buildings. Click the link and take the tour - you will never look at your campus the same way again. < Sign Up >

IMPACT! Youth Conference for Sustainability Leadership

Applications for IMPACT! Youth Conference for Sustainability Leadership close on January 23rd so please share this message, attached poster and information slide, video link and check out www.impactyouthsustainability.ca today. (4,000 people already have!)

Participants selected to attend this bilingual conference will:

Be inspired by Dr. David Suzuki’s key-note address
Collaborate with expert leaders and facilitators to explore and build tangible multi-industry and system sustainability solutions
Network with a diverse group of young Canadian sustainability leaders
Develop practical skills to lead sustainability initiatives following the conference

Qualified applicants are sustainability leaders between 19 – 25 years of age who are attending a Canadian College or University at the time of the conference. Interested students may also speak with their institution to explore opportunities for independent study course credit.

Held at the University of Guelph from September 15-18, 2011, the conference will excite, empower and equip university and college students to lead sustainability initiatives long after the conference. Students commit time and energy but all conference expenses will be covered for the 165 selected participants. Hear what David Suzuki and some participants had to say about the 2009 event on our You Tube video.

IMPACT! is a partnership among: The Co-operators, The David Suzuki Foundation, The Natural Step Canada, the University of Guelph, The University of Saskatchewan Centre for the Study of Co-operatives, Wilfrid Laurier University, Lambton College, Conseil de la coopération de l’Ontario, AIESEC and the Network for Business Sustainability.

Local & Global Sustainability: Putting Theory into Practice

Monday, February 7th, 2011, 3-5 pm
McKellar Theatre Second Floor, University Community Centre
The University of Western Ontario, Main Campus, London

Sustainability, a word we hear daily. But how do we put it into practice? Do we think and act locally or globally? Is it possible for local sustainability initiatives to have a far-reaching global effect? Does what we do as individuals matter on a broader scale?

Six panellists with diverse backgrounds will present their specific approaches to Environmental Sustainability that will encompass both local and global concepts. Each speaker will give a ten-minute presentation on how they personally have Put Sustainability Theory Into Practice. From the broad strokes of worldwide applications, to the localized stewardship of our community and our land, environmental sustainability casts an inclusive net. The student-run Environment and Sustainability Society is honoured to host a forum offering unique, interdisciplinary perspectives on sustainability by six speakers:

Michael Clarke - International Development Research Centre: Canada’s Role in Global Development

Jannalee Anderson - Opportunity International: Social Entrepreneurship and the Global South

Gideon Forman - Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment and Ecosystem Health: Ecosystem Health in Ontario

Kathy Douglas - United Church Youth Minister: The 100 Mile Diet and Food Security

Tiffany Roschkow - EcoLiving London and Green Drinks London: Social Empowerment in London

Joshua Blank - Ontario Farmer, Toronto Farmers’ Market and Agriculture: Agricultural Practices and Their Impact on Sustainability

The presentations will be followed by an open discussion, an audience Q&A, and a meet-and-greet. Everyone is welcome to this free event. For more information, please contact ess .uwo @gmail .com.

The Ecological Footprint Reduction Challenge (EFRC)

February 1st – 28th

The EFRC is a month-long challenge for the Ivey community, including students, faculty, staff, and alumni. During the beginning of February everyone will have the opportunity to measure their ecological footprint using an online calculator. Throughout the month of February, the Ivey Sustainability Initiatives team will be sending out educational material with suggestions for small adjustments people can make in their lifestyles to become more sustainable. A certain amount of points will be allocated to individuals based on the changes they incorporate into their lifestyles. There will be an electronic form for participants to fill out that has a list of commitments people can make and this will populate a database for us to measure the overall commitment by the Ivey community to reduce their footprints. The individual with the largest reduction will be deemed the winner of the EFRC. People are encouraged to submit their own ideas for how we as individuals can reduce our footprint or make suggestions as to how we can improve the sustainability of the school itself (like our recent battery and electronics recycling program).

“Steering into the Storm” - The Sustainability Conference

Wednesday, March 9th, 7 - 10pm

Room 1R40 at the Richard Ivey School of Business in London, Ontario
“Steering into the Storm” is a new annual conference centered on the themes of sustainability and leadership in business, and it will mark a year long culmination of sustainability-related initiatives at our school. Our sustainability initiatives, including this conference, are student-led and involve all members of the Ivey community, including students, staff, faculty and alumni. We anticipate that 400 students will attend “Steering into the Storm”, and our ultimate goal is to educate our community and inspire them to incorporate sustainable practices throughout their careers. In addition to the Ivey community, we are also planning on inviting UWO students at large that would have an interest in attending this event.
The focus of the conference will be three speakers sharing their thoughts and opinions from three different perspectives - government, academia, and business. The speakers are as follows:
Adrienne Clarkson, the past Governor General, is our keynote speaker and will share her unique insights around the leadership required to successfully transition to a sustainable economy.
Mark Jacobson, a Stanford professor and TED talk presenter, will discuss the contributions to sustainability from academia, with specific mention to his plan published in the Scientific Journal to transition the global energy supply entirely to renewable energy.
Nick Parker, the co-founder of Cleantech Group, will discuss the opportunity that lies for businesses in the sustainability sector.

Each speaker will talk for about 20-30 minutes and then we will have all of these speakers participate in a 30-40 minute panel discussion. This discussion will be moderated by Ron Dembo, the founder and CEO of ZeroFootprint, a company that provides software and consulting services to companies that want to reduce their environmental footprint.
In addition, the results of the Ecological Footprint Reduction Challenge will be announced, including the winner of the EFRC.

Companies in Africa Provide Great Example for Sustainability

Thursday, January 6, 2011

Ivey professor Mike Valente shows how to succeed by adopting sustainability into your business practices. <Read more>

Western achieves LEED Gold certification

By Communications Staff
Wednesday, December 22, 2010

The Claudette MacKay-Lassonde Pavilion in the Faculty of Engineering at The University of Western Ontario has officially been designated LEED (Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design) Gold by the Canadian Green Building Council. <Read more>

Western lands three new CRCs

By Paul Mayne
Thursday, November 25, 2010

Could the changing ecosystems of Ontario’s far north have an impact on human health? University of Western Ontario researcher Brian Branfireun, a newly appointed Canada Research Chair (CRC) in Environment and Sustainability (Tier 2), thinks so. <Read more>

Business success more than just the bottom line

By Paul Mayne
Thursday, November 18, 2010

Annette Verschuren’s company may be all about home improvements, but the president of Home Depot Canada says the bigger picture sees much needed improvements to the country itself – in areas such as renewable energy, innovation and competitiveness. <Read more>

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Audio/Video

Sustainability @ Western

The following demonstrates how engaged the campus community is at all levels. We are one University with many voices and many ideas. Video by Joyce Hui.

Western opens first LEED building

The Claudette MacKay-Lassonde Pavilion, the first LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certified building on The University of Western Ontario campus, officially opened its doors during Homecoming celebrations Saturday. Read more...

A sustainable campus is one that produces the smallest possible ecological footprint.