Overall Rating Gold - expired
Overall Score 76.20
Liaison Tori Grant
Submission Date Dec. 21, 2016
Executive Letter Download

STARS v2.1

University of Calgary
AC-8: Campus as a Living Laboratory

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 4.00 / 4.00 Aine Keogh
Specialist, Operational Sustainability & Reporting
Office of Sustainability
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Air & Climate 

Is the institution utilizing its campus as a living laboratory for multidisciplinary student learning and applied research in relation to Air & Climate?:
Yes

A brief description of the student/faculty projects and how they contribute to understanding campus sustainability challenges or advancing sustainability on campus in relation to Air & Climate:
Alberta Climate Leadership and UCalgary: This assesses the potential GHG performance of the university with the forecasted changes in the Alberta electricity grid carbon intensity.

Buildings  

Is the institution utilizing its campus as a living laboratory for multidisciplinary student learning and applied research in relation to Buildings?:
Yes

A brief description of the student/faculty projects and how they contribute to understanding campus sustainability challenges or advancing sustainability on campus in relation to Buildings:
MacKimmie Library Tower retrofits vs. demolition: This life cycle analysis report examines the cost, energy use, and global warming potential (GWP) associated with upgrading or replacing the building envelope and HVAC system.

Energy 

Is the institution utilizing its campus as a living laboratory for multidisciplinary student learning and applied research in relation to Energy?:
Yes

A brief description of the student/faculty projects and how they contribute to understanding campus sustainability challenges or advancing sustainability on campus in relation to Energy:
Biomass cogeneration project: life cycle analysis of biomass cogeneration in comparison to the installation of an additional natural gas cogeneration facility. Direct-fired, co-fired and gasification biomass technologies were investigated because they were the most common and viably proven technologies.

Food & Dining 

Is the institution utilizing its campus as a living laboratory for multidisciplinary student learning and applied research in relation to Food & Dining?:
Yes

A brief description of the student/faculty projects and how they contribute to understanding campus sustainability challenges or advancing sustainability on campus in relation to Food & Dining:
Food Supply project: Cradle to gate greenhouse gas emissions associated with protein source food products that are most consumed on campus: beef, chicken, pork, and eggs.

Grounds 

Is the institution utilizing its campus as a living laboratory for multidisciplinary student learning and applied research in relation to Grounds?:
Yes

A brief description of the student/faculty projects and how they contribute to understanding campus sustainability challenges or advancing sustainability on campus in relation to Grounds:
Life Cycle Assessment was carried out on a Potential Centralized Outdoor Lighting Control System at the University of Calgary Comparison between the current university outdoor lighting system and the implementation of a central control system.

Purchasing 

Is the institution utilizing its campus as a living laboratory for multidisciplinary student learning and applied research in relation to Purchasing?:
Yes

A brief description of the student/faculty projects and how they contribute to understanding campus sustainability challenges or advancing sustainability on campus in relation to Purchasing:
Students engaged with staff and supported getting the campus certified as a Fair Trade campus by planning and implementing educational events to increase awareness of ethical purchasing.

Transportation 

Is the institution utilizing its campus as a living laboratory for multidisciplinary student learning and applied research in relation to Transportation?:
Yes

A brief description of the student/faculty projects and how they contribute to understanding campus sustainability challenges or advancing sustainability on campus in relation to Transportation:
A student analyzed data collected during the Student Commuter Survey to facilitate a better understanding of commuting patterns to and from campus.

Waste 

Is the institution utilizing its campus as a living laboratory for multidisciplinary student learning and applied research in relation to Waste?:
Yes

A brief description of the student/faculty projects and how they contribute to understanding campus sustainability challenges or advancing sustainability on campus in relation to Waste:
Students created maps of the location of all recycling bins to help create an inventory and optimize placement.

Water 

Is the institution utilizing its campus as a living laboratory for multidisciplinary student learning and applied research in relation to Water?:
No

A brief description of the student/faculty projects and how they contribute to understanding campus sustainability challenges or advancing sustainability on campus in relation to Water:
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Coordination & Planning 

Is the institution utilizing its campus as a living laboratory for multidisciplinary student learning and applied research in relation to Coordination & Planning?:
Yes

A brief description of the student/faculty projects and how they contribute to understanding campus sustainability challenges or advancing sustainability on campus in relation to Coordination & Planning:
In February 2016, MBA students led a materiality assessment of sustainability reporting topics supported by the Office of Sustainability and a Professor in the Haskayne School of Business.

Diversity & Affordability 

Is the institution utilizing its campus as a living laboratory for multidisciplinary student learning and applied research in relation to Diversity & Affordability?:
No

A brief description of the student/faculty projects and how they contribute to understanding campus sustainability challenges or advancing sustainability on campus in relation to Diversity & Affordability:
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Investment & Finance 

Is the institution utilizing its campus as a living laboratory for multidisciplinary student learning and applied research in relation to Investment & Finance?:
No

A brief description of the student/faculty projects and how they contribute to understanding campus sustainability challenges or advancing sustainability on campus in relation to Investment & Finance:
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Public Engagement 

Is the institution utilizing its campus as a living laboratory for multidisciplinary student learning and applied research in relation to Public Engagement?:
No

A brief description of the student/faculty projects and how they contribute to understanding campus sustainability challenges or advancing sustainability on campus in relation to Public Engagement:
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Wellbeing & Work 

Is the institution utilizing its campus as a living laboratory for multidisciplinary student learning and applied research in relation to Wellbeing & Work?:
Yes

A brief description of the student/faculty projects and how they contribute to understanding campus sustainability challenges or advancing sustainability on campus in relation to Wellbeing & Work:
Through an innovative experiential learning class, kinesiology students are paired annually with University of Calgary staff. The students conduct health and fitness assessments that include measures of body composition and musculoskeletal and cardiovascular fitness. Each client then receives a program designed specifically for them, based on their assessment results. The plan also reflects the needs of their work environment and their specific, personal, health and fitness goals.

Other Impact Areas 

Is the institution utilizing its campus as a living laboratory for multidisciplinary student learning and applied research in relation to other areas (e.g. arts & culture or technology)?:
Yes

A brief description of the student/faculty projects and how they contribute to understanding campus sustainability challenges or advancing sustainability on campus in relation to other areas:
Reading Notes: Printer or Tablet? This life cycle assessment was conducted for the University of Calgary to estimate the environmental impacts from students reading notes by printing or by using tablets.

Optional Fields 

The website URL where information about the programs or initiatives is available:
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Additional documentation to support the submission:
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Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
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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.