| Overall Rating | Silver |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 53.24 |
| Liaison | Alicia Gowan |
| Submission Date | June 18, 2024 |
Kwantlen Polytechnic University
EN-11: Inter-Campus Collaboration
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
3.00 / 3.00 |
Alicia
Gowan Sustainability Specialist Campus and Community Planning |
Is the institution currently a member of a national or international higher education sustainability network?:
The name of the national or international sustainability network(s):
1) KPU is a member of The Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE) and Colleges and Institutes Canada. https://www.collegesinstitutes.ca/
2) KPU is also a member of Colleges and Institutes Canada (CICAN). https://www.collegesinstitutes.ca/what-we-do/advocacy/
3) KPU is a part of the Community of Practice on the SDG Accord hosted by Colleges and Institutes Canada. Initially attended by KPU's SDG Mapping Team in the 2022-2023 Academic Year, members of the Office of Sustainability have attended in the 2023-2024 Academic Year, with the possibility for a Faculty Lead to partake as well. This Community of Practice is a space for Post-Secondary members to come together and discuss what their respective schools are doing to advance the SDGs. The meetings are monthly and are well-structured, with frequent guest speakers.
4) KPU has both faculty and staff (from the Office of Sustainability) attend monthly meetings of the Cross-Canada Sustainability Conversations, another nation-wide sustainability committee.
Does the institution actively participate in a regional, state/provincial, or local higher education sustainability network?:
The name of the regional, state/provincial or local sustainability network(s):
KPU is a part of the "Feed BC" network. KPU joined in August 2021 with a shared interest in increasing local food awareness through food culture, sustainability, and food innovation on campus. Feed BC is a program led by the Ministry of Agriculture and Food with the Ministry of Post-Secondary Education and Future Skills and a network of multiple post-secondary institutes across British Columbia. This program enables universities to demonstrate their commitment to "their sustainability goals and student interests in local food, and measurably contribute to the economic development and vibrancy of their local B.C. communities". In addition, since the program launched in early 2021, the leadership teams of Feed BC have been working to "support a partner network and the participation and local food aspirations of public post-secondary partners." https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/industry/agriculture-seafood/growbc-feedbc-buybc/feed-bc-and-the-bc-food-hub-network/institutional-partnerships/feed-bc-in-post-secondary-institutions
Has the institution presented at a higher education sustainability conference during the previous year?:
A list or brief description of the conference(s) and presentation(s):
World Congress 2023 Conference April 24th, 2023 - 8:00-9:00AM A united institutional approach towards the SDGs: The KPU Story
In the 2022/2023 academic year, Kwantlen Polytechnic University (KPU) embarked on a journey to identify initiatives in the campus ecosystem that contribute to the advancement of the SDGs: from academic courses and programs, research, services, policies, to other programming and initiatives. The project team, comprised of faculty members, students, and alumni, employed a campus community approach where extensive consultations and informant conversations were held with internal community members (administrators, faculty, staff, and students) and external collaborators (CICan, SDSN, other post-secondary institutions). Additionally, an environmental scan was conducted to explore notable practices from national and international post-secondary institutions that KPU can learn and draw from.
The identification process, known as Step 1 in the SDG integration process (Sustainable Development Solutions Network [SDSN] – Australia/Pacific, 2017), uncovered areas of strength that might be offered as best practice examples for other post-secondary institutions, and as well, potential for opportunities to inform KPU’s strategic planning and direction to align with its Campus 2050 Campus Master Plan. Themes of recommendations include: enhancing cross-functional collaboration and reporting of the SDGs, promoting and supporting teaching with the SDGs, and educating the KPU community on the SDGs at every opportunity.
In this conference session, project team members and KPU’s Vice President of Academics who commissioned the project share their process and learning and exchange insights with conference delegates. The presentation was led by the following KPU employees: Candy Ho, University Lead, Sustainable Development Goals Diane Purvey, Provost and Vice-President, Academic Lindsay Wood, School of Business Instructor - Applied Communications, Co-operative Education, and Business Maryanne Eva, Associate Faculty, Graduate Business Diploma.
Has the institution submitted a case study during the previous year to an external higher education sustainability resource center or awards program?:
A list or brief description of the sustainability resource center or awards program and submission(s):
KPU has been recognized by Colleges and Institutes Canada (CICAN) as a leader in engaging students to become agents of change in advancing the Sustainable Development Goals. In CICANs SDG Toolkit for Canadian Colleges and Universities, KPU's leadership in the United Nation Open Pedagogy Fellowship is presented as a case study example of post secondary institutions making progress towards the SDGs in the Academic sphere. This ongoing project is a fellowship program designed to assist faculty to create renewable assignments to help students become agents of change in their own communities. This project has been ongoing since May 2019. https://pressbooks.pub/sdgcicanguide/chapter/academic/
Has the institution had employees or students serving on a board or committee of a sustainability network or conference during the previous three years?:
A list or brief description of the board or committee appointment(s):
1) KPU's lead for the SDG Mapping Project served as an advisor to the Sustainable Development Solutions Network team (Universities Canada) which recently launched a guide on how Canadian Post Secondary Institutes (PSIs) can map their SDG activities. In October 2023, they officially launched the guide "Reporting on the Sustainable Development Goals: A guide for Canada’s universities & colleges". This guide is meant to be a "reference point on how post-secondary institutions in Canada and around the world are reporting their progress on the SDGs, with the aim of also accelerating SDG reporting, commitments, and action by Canada’s universities and colleges". KPU is featured as a case study within the document due to its leadership in advancing the SDGs within Canadian PSI's, specifically in relation to its SDG Mapping Project. https://www.univcan.ca/media-room/publications/reporting-on-the-sdgs-guide/#:~:text=The%20guide%20is%20a%20collaborative,environmental%20challenges%20facing%20our%20planet
2) The Federation of Post-Secondary Educators (FPSE) has a Climate Action Steering Committee of which a KPU Faculty member is representing KPU as a member of the Kwantlen Faculty Association. According to their website, the FPSE of British Columbia is the provincial voice of 10,000 faculty and staff at BC’s teaching universities, colleges, institutes and private sector institutions. The Climate Action Steering Committee seeks to assist locals in pursuing initiatives to address the climate emergency. https://fpse.ca/committees/climate-action-standing-committee
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?:
A brief description of the mentoring relationship and activities:
1) KPU's Office of Sustainability and the University of Fraser Valley (UFV) Office of Sustainability have established a working relationship since the spring of 2023. Staff and admin of each office meet online every other month to discuss, strategize, and provide feedback to one another regarding new and ongoing initiatives, programs, and plans related to sustainability at each respective university. Resources, knowledge, and ideas are shared to embody a relationship of reciprocity.
2) KPU's Office of Sustainability also has a working relationship with the sustainability team at the British Columbia Institute of Technology. Their sustainability team has mentored KPU's STARS data collectors through the STARS submission process.
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?:
A brief description of the peer review activities:
Yes, KPU will be serving as the external peer reviewer for the British Columbia Institute for Technology for their 2024 submission.
A brief description of other inter-campus collaborative efforts around sustainability during the previous year :
Website URL where information about the institution’s inter-campus collaborations is available:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
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.