| Overall Rating | Silver |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 58.84 |
| Liaison | Paulina Szlachta |
| Submission Date | May 6, 2024 |
St. Lawrence College
EN-5: Outreach Campaign
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
4.00 / 4.00 |
Jadon
Hook Sustainability Officer Facilities Management Services |
Has the institution held a sustainability-related outreach campaign during the previous three years that was directed at students and yielded measurable, positive results in advancing sustainability?:
Has the institution held a sustainability-related outreach campaign during the previous three years that was directed at employees and yielded measurable, positive results in advancing sustainability?:
Name of the campaign:
A brief description of the campaign:
The Cano Reusable Container Program was launched across the three SLC campuses in spring 2023. This app-driven program enables the college community to order food and beverages in reusable containers and mugs rather than in disposable containers.
This borrow and return program is app-based and participants scan their containers upon borrowing and return and automatically get rewarded with points which can be redeemed for free or discounted food and beverages. The program launch has included an information and communications campaign which has included information booths on-campus, during orientation, and pop-up booths promoting the app. The Sustainability team has also worked closely with the Communicatios team at SLC to create newsletter stories, promotions on screens throughout the campuses, and posters. The messages in these promotions are rooted in both environmental and reward-based lenses, and the SLC community is encouraged to participate both to reduce waste and to benefit from discounted food and beverages. where an information booth was placed on-campus and students could participate for rewards when signing-up for Cano.
The Footprint club (the sustainability student club) has also promoted the campaign through a peer-to-peer approach where students encourage other students to sign up and share the benefits to be gained (both climate and personal) by signing up.
Finally, the Sustainability Team has also worked with Behavioral Psychology program through an individual student thesis which studied the launch of the Cano program. This project was focused on user behavior, and ran a secondary campaign promoting Cano using different messaging and studying the effects on user uptake.
A brief description of the measured positive impact(s) of the campaign:
The campaign yielded positive results: students and staff usage increased following each round of communications. At date of submission, the Cano program now has 851 active users, has diverted 3899 total packages, 1147 containers, and 2752 cups from landfill. 116 kg of waste was diverted from landfill and 886 rewards have been redeemed.
- Cano Database:
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1Svwdcm8bJlKg6NRx09jGDmiFmNwpJM-dVq0yD6tiXIo/edit?pli=1#gid=1364407030
This tracking sheet is updated by our third party program supplier (CANO) tracking the program's usage across the three campus sites. - Communications example from the Cano campaign: https://www.stlawrencecollege.ca/blog/reducing-waste-at-slc-the-cano-report-fall-2023
Name of the campaign (2nd campaign):
A brief description of the campaign (2nd campaign):
The EcoSwitch Contest was a student-led campaign, sponsored by SLC's Sustainability Office. The campaign focused on replacing the use of single-use cups for reusable mugs on-campus (either bring your own mug, or utilizing the on-campus Cano program app). This awareness campaign was run on Sustainability's social media platform Instagram for one week. Participants would click a picture or video using a reusable mug and post a story using the contest hashtag and tagging the Instagram account.
Participants were also encouraged to "challenge a friend". Each submission was an entry to participate in a draw at the end of the challenge. Link to "EcoSwitch" Contest on
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/p/Ct9mLksguZ4/?img_index=1
A brief description of the measured positive impact(s) of the campaign (2nd campaign):
Over 15 students participated in the contest. Participants started a peer-to-peer awareness around switching to reusables. An increase usage of reusable mug on-campus In addition, it increased awareness and use of the hydration stations where students can easily refill their own water bottles.
A brief description of other sustainability-related outreach campaigns:
Footprint Student Club and the Sustainability Office host several events throughout the school year aimed to advance the talk of sustainability among students. The events hosted include Sustainability Sprint Series, U.N SDGs Expo, Plastic Free July Campaign, Commuter Challenge, Sustainability Month, and others.
Link to Footprint's Social Media Platform where most events are posted: https://www.instagram.com/footprintslc/
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.