The University of British Columbia
IN-1: Innovation 1

The UBC Sustainability Initiative (USI) exemplifies our University’s commitment to sustainability and advances sustainability on our campus and beyond. Established in January 2010 and grounded in the ideas and aspirations of faculty, staff and students who contributed to UBC’s Sustainability Academic Strategy (www.sas.ubc.ca), the USI integrates operational and academic efforts in sustainability. The USI is an innovative model that unites our efforts in education, research, partnerships and operations under one strategic umbrella. Our team of 29 faculty, staff, and USI Fellows, led by Executive Director Dr. John Robinson, work together to develop academic and extra-curricular programming, foster research, transform the campus’s physical infrastructure, and implement partnerships. Our goal is to commit, integrate, demonstrate and inspire. UBC is an acknowledged leader in campus sustainability and is increasingly recognized as a hub for discussion and research on many wider aspects of sustainability, including resource conservation, habitat preservation, climate change, social equity and economic resiliency. Under the USI umbrella, the offices of Teaching and Learning, Research and Partnerships, and Campus Sustainability work together to leverage efforts in the areas of environmental, economic and social sustainability. USI efforts focus on two cross-cutting themes: the campus as a living laboratory and the University as an agent of change. Under the first theme, we use the campus as a test-bed for sustainability – to evaluate the technological and economic feasibility of novel sustainable practices; use these operational innovations to educate students in the social, economic and environmental dimensions of sustainable design and operations; and undertake leading research. The second theme focuses on UBC’s role beyond campus. As a sustainability leader, UBC facilitates dialogue and fosters partnerships between the University, business and government close to home and around the world.