Overall Rating Silver - expired
Overall Score 60.39
Liaison Christina Olsen
Submission Date March 30, 2021

STARS v2.2

British Columbia Institute of Technology
EN-11: Inter-Campus Collaboration

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 2.50 / 3.00
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Is the institution currently a member of a national or international higher education sustainability network?:
Yes

The name of the national or international sustainability network(s):
1. The Association for Advancement in Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE). https://www.aashe.org/

2. Universitas Indonesia GreenMetric (UI Green Metric) World University Rankings. http://greenmetric.ui.ac.id/

Does the institution actively participate in a regional, state/provincial, or local higher education sustainability network?:
Yes

The name of the regional, state/provincial or local sustainability network(s):
CityStudio

CityStudio Vancouver was founded in 2011 to accelerate sustainability in higher education and provide students with direct opportunities to work in and with the city on urban challenges. It is an innovation hub that brings together city staff, students, faculty and community to co-create experimental projects that make Vancouver more sustainable, liveable, joyful, and inclusive.

Born in response to Vancouver’s plan to become the greenest city in the world by 2020, CityStudio was created with the support of founding partners, Simon Fraser University (SFU) and the City of Vancouver. Since then it has grown into a collaboration between the City of Vancouver, SFU, BCIT, University of British Columbia (UBC), Langara College, Emily Carr University of Art + Design (ECUAD) and the Native Education College (NEC).

http://citystudiovancouver.com/

BC Hydro Energy Wise

BCIT actively participates in the BC Hydro Energy Wise Network – a provincial network that helps engage people at higher education and other organizations to save energy. BC Hydro provides training, networking opportunities, campaign toolkits, and customized coaching and incentive funding to help with energy reduction. The BC Hydro Energy Manager program has monthly webinars on energy efficiency and project case study topics. They also meet twice a year for a 2-day forum. All the energy managers from higher education institutions in British Columbia participate as do those from the health authorities and school districts.

https://www.bchydro.com/powersmart/business/programs/workplace-conservation.html?WT.mc_id=rd_energywise

Has the institution presented at a higher education sustainability conference during the previous year?:
Yes

A list or brief description of the conference(s) and presentation(s):
Dr. Jennie Moore, Director of Institute Sustainability, and Kory Wilson, Executive Director of Indigenous Initiatives and Partnerships presented at the AASHE Global Conference on Sustainability in Higher Education that took place in October 2020. They discussed “Leading with Social Justice to Advance Sustainability: Learning from Indigenization” and provided information on BCIT’s efforts to advance Indigenization and sustainability at BCIT through joint activities. An overview of the Indigenous Vision and Sustainability Vision was provided along with a discussion of common elements shared between the two.

Dr. Moore also presented at the UI Green Metric Conference in October 2020. She discussed the strategies employed for energy and climate management at BCIT.

Has the institution submitted a case study during the previous year to an external higher education sustainability resource center or awards program?:
Yes

A list or brief description of the sustainability resource center or awards program and submission(s):
BCIT submitted an application for the 2020 AASHE Sustainability Awards. The submission was for the Wood Waste to Energy Project, a closed-loop biomass district energy system.

The Carpentry and Joinery programs create wood waste from lumber off-cuts, which historically have been disposed from campus using external waste haulers. Additionally, the wood shops have been heated using natural-gas-fired appliances, with a significant associated greenhouse gas emission footprint. Repurposing the wood waste as fuel for a biomass boiler, energy is generated which is then used to provide space heating for the two program buildings. This greatly reduces external energy source flows via natural gas displacement, as well as cost and emissions associated with hauling wood waste off-site for disposal.

https://hub.aashe.org/browse/casestudy/23337/BCIT-Wood-Waste-to-Energy-Project

Has the institution had employees or students serving on a board or committee of a sustainability network or conference during the previous three years?:
No

A list or brief description of the board or committee appointment(s):
---

Does the institution have an ongoing mentoring relationship with another institution through which it assists the institution with its sustainability reporting and/or the development of its sustainability program?:
Yes

A brief description of the mentoring relationship and activities:
BCIT has a relationship with Langara College located in Vancouver, British Columbia (BC). Langara College was established as an independent public college under the Provincial College and Institute Act. The College is also known as snəw̓eyəɬ leləm̓, house of teachings, a name given to them by the Musqueam First Nation, on whose unceded traditional territory they are located. Today, Langara is one of BC's leading undergraduate institutions providing University Studies, Career Studies, and Continuing Studies programs and courses to more than 23,000 students annually.

Langara has registered for the STARS Reporting Tool and are working towards their first STARS submission. Langara staff, led by their Director of Facilities Dwayne Doornbosch, provided an external audit of this first STARS submission for BCIT. The audit provided them an opportunity to get better acquainted with the STARS process and learn from the BCIT STARS team. BCIT staff will continue to work with Langara as they pursue their first STARS rating.

https://langara.ca/

Has the institution had employees or students serving as peer reviewers of another institution’s sustainability data and/or STARS submission during the previous three years?:
No

A brief description of the peer review activities:
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Optional Fields 

A brief description of other inter-campus collaborative efforts around sustainability during the previous year :
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Website URL where information about the institution’s inter-campus collaborations is available:
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Additional documentation to support the submission:
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Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
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The information presented here is self-reported. While AASHE staff review portions of all STARS reports and institutions are welcome to seek additional forms of review, the data in STARS reports are not verified by AASHE. If you believe any of this information is erroneous or inconsistent with credit criteria, please review the process for inquiring about the information reported by an institution or simply email your inquiry to stars@aashe.org.