Dawson College
PA-2: Sustainability Planning

The 2022-23 fiscal year is an extended "bridge year" added to the previous 5 year strategic plan. It was adopted by the college board of governors as additional time to react to post COVID delays and have proper review processes in place for a new 5 year plan.  The new 2024-29 strategic plan was adopted by the board of governors and has sustainability positioned strongly as one of three colege orientations.

Annual Reports are submitted to the Board of Governors regarding these sustainability objectives. The Objectives are public information and sector-specific content is reviewed with staff in each sector.
Dawson Academic Strategies: p.13 https://www.dawsoncollege.qc.ca/sustainable/wp-content/uploads/sites/175/DawsonCollege-SustainabilityPlan_2016-2021.pdf
Strategies:
• Increase the amount of sustainability-focused or related courses offered to students
• Develop a Sustainability Certificate program
• Pursue funding for development of sustainability-focused or related courses and projects
• Deliver a minimum of two sustainability-focused or related immersive experiences for students
• Increase sustainability literacy among students and staff
• Increase the use of College grounds and building as a living lab
• Create an open-access web-based platform for Dawson research

Success Indicators:
• The disciplines of French,English, Humanities and Physical Education all offer at least one sustainability-focused or related course
• 90% of all programs offer at least one sustainability-focused or related course
• 20% of all courses at Dawson are sustainability-focused or related
• Funding for development of sustainability-focused or related courses and/or projects has been secured
• 10% of all research is sustainability-focused or related
• A minimum of one sustainability-focused or related immersive experiences for students is delivered
• An increase in student and staff sustainability literacy
• An increase in the use of the College campus for teaching and learning
• A Dawson College, open-access platform for information about sustainability-related research, has been established.

Additional unique "bridge year" objectives are:
- To implement a national demonstration climate project through an academic program
See: Raised wetland project - Phys. Ed. dept.
- Align sustainability Objectives with municipality and city
- Develop 2 international, 2 national and 5 local partnerships

p. 15, https://www.dawsoncollege.qc.ca/sustainable/wp-content/uploads/sites/175/DawsonCollege-SustainabilityPlan_2016-2021.pdf - extended to 2021-22 "bridge" year due to COVID-related delays in planning new strategic plan.
Strategies:
• Develop and deliver student orientation activities related to sustainability
• Develop a minimum of five co-curricular sustainability activities for students yearly
• Implement a minimum of two outreach campaigns
• Implement an annual, subsidized sustainability workshop or course for staff
• Develop a student peer-to-peer and a staff peer-to-peer sustainability education program
• Produce a recurring sustainability newsletter
• Develop a comprehensive website explaining Dawson’s sustainability efforts
• Sign sustainability-related cooperation agreements with at least two Canadian and one international non-governmental organizations
• Promote inter-campus collaboration by sharing best practices in sustainability, with at least five post-secondary institutions
• Offer a certificate in Sustainable Happiness to Dawson staff and external community through Dawson’s Centre for Training and Development
• Involve students and staff, where feasible, in operations that improve the campus’s sustainability efforts (p.17)

Success Indicators:
• Orientation activities for new students and new staff include a sustainability component
• Increase in the number of sustainability-related outreach initiatives and campaigns for students
• Awareness of sustainability initiatives has increased among staff and students
• An increase in social media interaction to promote awareness of sustainability initiatives
• An increase in the number of visits to the Dawson sustainability website
• An increase in student and staff participation in sustainability-related events
• Increase in the number of staff who have obtained a Sustainable Happiness Certificate
p. 16 https://www.dawsoncollege.qc.ca/sustainable/wp-content/uploads/sites/175/DawsonCollege-SustainabilityPlan_2016-2021.pdf
The Waste Management Guide uses both student research and waste audits done by volunteer groups that are involved in the Dawson volunteer program and mentions student engagement on pages 3, 6, 8 and 10.
Special extra-curricular projects are also encouraged and volunteers are recruited from a designated home page on the Sustainability web site to work on landscape projects, waste management or climate action projects. Facilities Management has made great efforts to engage students and staff, as listed in the Sustainability Plan strategies for operations which states: Involve students and staff, where feasible, in operations that improve the campus’s sustainability efforts.
Unique "bridge plan" objectives:
- Offer two Sustainable happiness Programs to staff.

p. 17, https://www.dawsoncollege.qc.ca/sustainable/wp-content/uploads/sites/175/DawsonCollege-SustainabilityPlan_2016-2021.pdf
Strategies:
• Install energy efficient lighting
• Install energy efficient HVAC systems
Success Indicators:
Install energy efficient lighting
• Install energy efficient HVAC systems
• Install recycling and composting centres
• 50% of all electronics purchases are energy efficient, end-of-life management (EPEAT) certified
Unique "bridge plan" objectives:
- Analyzed full scope 3 carbon footprint of college
* New chillers, over 7000 LED light fixtures and an approximate 88% EPEAT purchase rate of electronic equipment has helped reduce energy consumption.

Well-being for all is a college central value.
2022-23 objectives include:
- Develop alternative funding opportunities for sustainability. Artists in Bloom fundraising event for Living Campus; Bioretention project funds; Creative Collective for change and Dawson's Hive (LGBTQ+ community) activities; wellness breaks published by communication; health services wellness, depression awareness, stress-free activities;
-Bridge plan objectives:
-Develop alternative funding opportunities for sustainability

In November, 2024, the Board of Govenors accepted the new 2024-29 Sustainability Plan.

Carbon Neutral motion:

It was moved by Alex McComber, seconded by Jean Nagy, WHEREAS THE
OCTOBER 2018 UN INTERGOVERNMENTAL PANEL ON CLIMATE
CHANGE REPORT, WHICH STATES THE PLANET ONLY HAS UNTIL
2030 TO STEM CATASTROPHIC CLIMATE CHANGE, AND THE
RESPONSIBILITY OF INSTITUTES OF HIGHER EDUCATION TO MODEL
POSITIVE CHANGE IN SOCIETY, THAT DAWSON COLLEGE DECLARES
ITSELF CARBON NEUTRAL FOREVER, AND CONTINUES TO REDUCE
ITS CARBON FOOTPRINT IN WHATEVER MEANS POSSIBLE AND
MANAGEABLE.
The motion was adopted unanimously with one abstention.
Je certifie que cet extrait est conforme au procès-verbal de la réunion du 24 octobre 2018
du 495e Conseil d’administration du Collège Dawson et à laquelle il y avait quorum.

https://www.dawsoncollege.qc.ca/governance/policies-and-bylaws/college-policies/

Dawson is a signatory to the Talloires Declaration, a member of the Quebec CEGEP Vert network and certifications (excellence level), has entered appropriate data for on the HESI participatory forms and is a member of the Pan-Canadian UN SDG Working group integrating SDGs at the college level and a member of the Sustainable Development Solutions Network Canada also working on UN SDG integration. Alignment with Earth Charter criteria are referenced in all Living Campus published cases for support documents - link below.

Policy to stem violence, discrimination, harassment and abuse of power: https://www.dawsoncollege.qc.ca/wp-content/external-includes/spdocs/documents/bog-hr-01-stem-violence-discrimination-harassment-and-abuse-of-power.pdf

Dawson has over 70 languages spoken in the hallways and prides itself as a diverse, multi-ethnic college in both the student and staff population. College education is free to all students that reside in Quebec and Dawson's Accessibility Center helps over 1000 documented special needs students per year while the financial aid service at the college has a full-time employee managing over $4M in interest-free loans and bursaries given to students in need (reference 2019).