Sheridan College (Ontario)
OP-17: Guidelines for Business Partners

Both the Request for Proposals (RFP) template document and the Sustainability Policy indicate that contractors must comply with minimum environmental and worker rights standards and practices.

The Sustainability Policy applies to any individual or organization making decisions for Sheridan College, including “Board members, employees and others including volunteers, consultants and contractors engaged by Sheridan to provide services.” The policy is based four science-based sustainability principles of The Natural Step:

“Principle 1: We must eliminate our contributions to the systematic increase of concentrations of substances extracted from the Earth’s crust (e.g. heavy metals and fossil fuels).
This means substituting our use of certain minerals that are scarce in nature with others that are more abundant, using all mined materials efficiently, and systematically reducing our dependence on fossil fuels.

Principle 2: We must eliminate our contributions to the systematic increase of concentrations of substances produced by society (e.g. plastics, dioxins, PCBs, DDT and neonicotinoids).
This means substituting certain persistent and unnatural compounds with ones that are normally abundant or break down more easily in nature, and using all substances produced by society efficiently.

Principle 3: We must eliminate our contributions to the systematic physical degradation of nature and natural processes (e.g. over harvesting forests, destroying habitat and overfishing).
This means drawing resources only from well-managed eco-systems, systematically pursuing the most productive and efficient use of resources and land, and exercising caution in all kinds of modifications of nature, such as overharvesting and the introduction of invasive or non-native species.

Principle 4: We must eliminate our contributions to conditions that systematically undermine people’s capacity to meet their basic human needs.
This means offering products and services and changing practices, suppliers, and business models to those who demonstrate, through their policies and practices, that human rights are respected, income-making barriers are removed, safe and healthy work environments are provided, and living conditions allow local communities to meet the needs of citizens.”

The Sustainability Procedures further define sustainable practices as they pertain to the Sustainability Policy:

Overall Sustainability
The following is a list of general guidelines, measures and provisions pertaining broadly to sustainable practice, which a decision maker may consult for reference.
1. Sheridan will seek to consistently act in ways that preserve and enhance natural and social capital to allow future generations to enjoy a quality of life that is equal to or greater than our own.
2. Sheridan will develop and model a culture of sustainability that instils a global societal perspective, and truly reflects how the Sheridan community’s everyday interactions affect sustainability on campus and beyond.
3. Sheridan will take every opportunity to minimize adverse environmental and social impacts of its facilities operations. All campus operations, including procurement and food services, should seek ways to mitigate and improve the environmental impacts associated with delivery of services.
4. Any new RFP solicited should include ways that vendors will seek to mitigate and improve the environmental impacts associated with the delivery of services.
5. Sheridan will embrace transparency and accountability, as cornerstones of driving its sustainable transformation, by publically sharing its sustainability metrics and institutional sustainability performance. This includes, wherever possible, establishing infrastructure for monitoring, processing and measuring resource consumption and pricing at the building level, and allowing access to this information.
6. Sheridan will develop and publish its Sustainability Plan by January 1, 2016. The Plan will be built through broad stakeholder engagement, and will be reviewed on a bi-annual basis. The Plan will be published on the Office for Sustainability Intranet, accessible to employees through Access Sheridan.
7. Sheridan will file an Annual Sustainability Report describing its progress on goals set forth in the Sustainability Plan.
8. Sheridan will leverage its position as a leader in creative programming to address sustainability challenges with innovations in energy and water use, waste reduction, air quality improvement, and product procurement that will meet and potentially exceed our mandatory compliance commitments. Research at Sheridan can contribute creative solutions that diminish, neutralize and counteract adverse environmental impacts. Where possible, lessons learned will be applied and freely shared.
9. Sheridan will strive to help students, through their experiences at Sheridan, achieve environmental awareness and exposure to leading-edge sustainable practice within the context of current and emerging world issues. Sheridan seeks to help students become conscientious stewards of the planet.
10. Sheridan strives to prepare the next generation of global citizens to address the difficult challenges of global climate change, environmental degradation, social justice, and social equity.

The RFP template also addresses the four sustainability principles of the Natural Step as well as Sheridan College’s Mission Zero goals. In addition, it outlines the Final Agreement requirements business partners must adhere to. The requirements include:

5.2 Any Contract resulting from this Request for Proposal will be governed by and will be construed and interpreted in accordance with the laws of the Province of Ontario. The successful Respondent shall abide by all relevant provisions of the Canada Labour Code and the Employment Standards Act of Ontario, as amended.

5.3.2 The successful Respondent, his agent, all workmen and persons employed by him, or under his control, will use due care that no person or persons are injured and that no property is damaged in the prosecution of the work and the successful Respondent will be solely responsible for all damages to person or property, including theft, whether the property is owned by Sheridan or any of its employees.

5.3.3 WSIB Certificate: Prior to commencing the services covered by this Proposal, the successful Respondent will provide to Sheridan a copy of certificates of good standing with the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (“WSIB Certificates”) stating that the Respondent and all of its Subcontractors have complied with the requirements of the Workplace Safety and Insurance Act and in particular, that all requisite premiums under such Act have been paid. In addition, the respondent may be requested to provide a WISR (Workplace Injury Summary Report).

5.4 Indemnification
The Respondent shall hold Sheridan’s officers, agents, and employees free and harmless from and against any and all liability, including, but not limited to, cost of claims, suits, and counsel fees arising from, growing out of, or incidental to the actual or alleged use of any copyrighted composition, secret or proprietary process, patented or unpatented invention article or appliance, including foreign letters patents, furnished as a result of this Proposal.

5.5 Health & Safety
5.5.2 To the extent that the Occupational Health and Safety Act and regulations apply to the products and/or services to be provided pursuant to the contract, the successful Respondent shall:
i) fulfill and comply with all the obligations and responsibilities of the “Vendor” under the Act at its own cost;
ii) be responsible for any health and/or safety violation which may occur;
iii) promptly report any violation of the Act or Regulations to the appropriate authorities and Sheridan and;
iv) indemnify and save harmless Sheridan, its trustees, employees, agents and servants from any and all charges, fines, penalties and costs that may be imposed, incurred or paid as a result of any violation of the Act and Regulations.