| Overall Rating | Gold - expired |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 67.16 |
| Liaison | Mike Versteege |
| Submission Date | June 24, 2020 |
| Executive Letter | Download |
University of Alberta
EN-5: Outreach Campaign
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
4.00 / 4.00 |
Behn
Jang Program Coordinator, Energy Management and Sustainable Operations Facilities and Operations |
Has the institution held at least one 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 at least one 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, including how students and/or employees were engaged:
The UAlberta Commuter Challenge is hosted each year at the same time as the National Commuter Challenge, a friendly competition between Canadian cities and workplaces hosted during Canadian Environment Week (the first week of June).
The UAlberta Commuter Challenge primarily focuses on staff and faculty by encouraging teams from offices, labs, and other groups in the university community to leave their cars at home and take more active and sustainable transportation modes for the week of the competition.
Two winners are recognized, based on which teams achieve the largest percent participation and the largest number of sustainable commutes during the week. Sustainable commutes include walking, cycling, carpooling/ride-sharing, taking transit and telecommuting.
In 2019 this competition was held from Monday, June 3 to Friday June 7. In 2020 the competition was not held due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which resulted in most staff working remotely.
A brief description of the measured positive impact(s) of the campaign:
This challenge ran from June 3 to June 7, 2019.
Winners were:
- Highest number of sustainable trips: Dean of Students Portfolio
- Highest percentage of sustainable trips: Facility Planning & Projects, Department of Medicine
In total, 33% of trips made by participants were categorized as sustainable - this amounted to 3,414 sustainable trips and 25,238 km of sustainable travel throughout the week of the competition.
The following savings estimates were determined:
- 2,125 liters of fuel saved
- 3,353 kg of CO2 equivalents avoided
An evaluation survey was sent to all participants. Highlights from survey responses included:
- "Brought an important issue to everyone’s attention"
- "Getting the discussion going in the workplace - seeing how everyone else succeeded"
The website URL where information about the campaign is available:
Name of the campaign (2nd campaign):
A brief description of the campaign, including how students and/or employees were engaged (2nd campaign):
The Green Spaces Residence Challenge helps students living in residence, often away from home for the first time, to adopt new habits to form a sustainable lifestyle and earn recognition for their efforts. By participating in this challenge, residents commit to engaging and promoting sustainability on campus, taking steps to reduce waste, learning about social sustainability initiatives, and conserving energy and water in their living spaces. The competition ran from Monday, November 4 to Monday, November 25, 2019.
A brief description of the measured positive impact(s) of the campaign (2nd campaign):
The challenge saw 106 students certify their space among 9 participating residences. Residents submitted 89 innovative actions that they either committed to or already completed related to categories such energy, water, transportation, social and environmental good, recycling and composting, food, engagement, and reuse and upcycle.
The website URL where information about the campaign is available (2nd campaign):
A brief description of other sustainability-related outreach campaigns, including measured positive impacts:
LAB ULT FREEZER ENERGY EFFICIENCY REBATE PROGRAM
https://www.ualberta.ca/vice-president-facilities-operations/projects/energy-management-and-sustainable-operations/green-labs/index.html
Energy Management and Sustainable Operations provides monetary incentives for labs to purchase more energy efficient ultra-low temperature (ULT) freezers. In 2019, 14 old ULTs were retired and 18 new, efficient ULTs were purchased. The estimated savings from these changes is $5,900 and 59,000 kWh per year. Efficiency of ULT units is important because they are some of the biggest consumers of energy in laboratories and are estimated to consume as much energy as a single-family household in Alberta each year.
GREEN SPACES CERTIFICATION PROGRAM
https://www.ualberta.ca/vice-president-facilities-operations/projects/energy-management-and-sustainable-operations/green-spaces.html
The Green Spaces certification program helps office spaces, labs, events and residences integrate sustainable practices into work and living spaces at the University of Alberta. Participants earn a bronze, silver or gold certification for their space. From April 1, 2019 through March 31, 2020 there were 192 certified spaces (24 offices, 25 labs, 21 events, 109 residence units, and 13 food vendors).
The website URL where information about the programs or initiatives is available:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
ADDITIONAL RESPONSIBLE PARTIES:
Shannon Leblanc
Program Team Lead
Energy Management and Sustainable Operations
Facilities & Operations
ADDITIONAL RESPONSIBLE PARTIES:
Shannon Leblanc
Program Team Lead
Energy Management and Sustainable Operations
Facilities & Operations
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.