Kwantlen Polytechnic University
EN-6: Assessing Sustainability Culture

KPU's sustainability culture assessment, called "Everyday [Sustainability] Decision-making" was a part of a wider Sustainability Survey sent to the entire campus community in February, 2024, which will be launched annually moving forward. The culture assessment met the requirement of at least 10 questions. The total number of selection options per question depended on whether you were a student, staff, or faculty as some questions were only relevant to a certain group. Regardless, every group received above the minimum required 10 questions. This survey had approximately 43 questions, including mandatory and optional questions containing closed and open-ended responses. This culture assessment was one of three parts of the survey. The other two sections assessed sustainability literacy and commute modal split, along with other travel-related questions. The questions were created after an extensive review of sustainability surveys used by other organizations and post secondary institutes. KPU's bespoke survey was created with the local/regional and KPU contexts in mind. Additionally, questions were asked in ways that kept in mind the nuances of the KPU community. All questions for the Sustainability Survey and therefore the culture assessment were written by the Office of Sustainability (OoS) with input from the Office of Planning and Accountability (OPA). OPA then supported OoS in launching the survey by setting the survey up on Qualtrics, a survey software, and also providing their expertise in attaining the most statistically valid responses.

1) In the past calendar year (2023), how often did you do the following? Participants can select never, rarely, occasionally, usually, always. [Sample selections include "used a reusable shopping bag"; "fixed, borrowed, traded or donated personal belongings"; "made dietary choices for sustainability reasons"; "went to local or regional forests or greenspaces for restorative time or recreation".

2) How much do you agree or disagree with each of the following statements? Participants can select strongly disagree, somewhat disagree, neither agree nor disagree, somewhat agree, strongly agree. [Sample selections include "I think of myself as a part of nature and not separate from nature", "I consider environmental, social, and economic impacts when making decisions"]

3) Have you participated in a sustainability-related event, group, project, or committee at KPU? If yes, which sustainability-related event, group, project, or committee at KPU have you participated in?

4) There are multiple initiatives and services on campus that promote sustainability. Out of the following activities and services on campus, please provide your level of awareness and/or participation in the following.

5) If there are any other activities or services on campus that promote sustainability that you are aware of or use, please list them below.

6) There are multiple strategic documents at KPU that uphold the values of and/or support sustainability. Out of the following KPU-wide strategic documents, please provide your level of awareness and/or participation in the following.

7) If there are any other KPU-wide strategic documents that uphold the values of and/or support sustainability that you are aware of or have read, please list them below.

8) Please indicate the degree to which you agree with the following statements [Sample selection options include "I see a connection between my work/studies and sustainability at KPU", "I would like KPU to take more action on sustainability and climate change", etc.]

9) The following list includes a variety of potential environmental sustainability priorities. Which are the most important to you when thinking about KPU? Please select up to three. [Priorities include options like renewable energy use, biodiversity on campus, sustainable transportation, etc.]

10) What is the biggest barrier you face in acting more sustainably in your personal, academic, and/or professional life?

11) Do you have any suggestions to enhance sustainability at KPU?

The Sustainability Survey was launched to half of the student body. The other half of the student body received another institutional survey at this time. The Office of Planning and Accountability ensures the survey is sent to a randomly generated list of half of the student body, therefore, it can be assumed it was a representative sample and not a selective sample. The assessment was sent on February 8th, 2024 and remained open until March 3rd, 2024. Students received an email from the President's Office to encourage their participation and were reminded once each week until the closing date for their participation. All students who participate are invited to enter themselves into a draw for a $500 tuition waiver or a $400 grocery gift card. This prize draw was the same for the other survey to ensure there were no discrepancies in response rate due to the prize itself. For employees, the Sustainability Survey was launched on February 6th and remained open until February 25th. A prize draw could not be administered for employees, however, the President's University Communicator encouraged employees to support the efforts, which likely encouraged participation. Reminder emails were sent out each week until the closing date. Additionally, the Office of Sustainability sent out a personal reminder on KPU's daily newsletter to employees which reminded and thanked employees for their participation. This Survey, and therefore the culture assessment, was sent out to all employees at KPU.

Some results from the culture survey include the following: For both students and employees, most respondents often 1) avoid purchasing bottled water 2) sort waste into recycling and compost bins 3) use reusable shopping bags, avoided single-use utensils, or bring reusable to-go containers. Students and employees sometimes or often fix, borrow, trade or donate their belongings or purchase items second hand. 2/3 of students typically choose sustainable transportation on a frequent basis, whereas only about 30% of employees do. Students and employees rarely or never participate in or volunteer for a cause because of its sustainability-related focus.

Note: As 2024 was the first year of the survey, the assessment will be administered longitudinally over time moving forward. More specifically, the Annual Sustainability Survey is scheduled to be administered each year in February. As noted in the "Help Center", "in order to claim points for conducting a pre- and post-assessment, the post-test must have taken place already OR be scheduled to take place at a future date". This is why the selection was made above for "structure of the assessment" as "administered longitudinally over time".