Overall Rating Gold - expired
Overall Score 67.46
Liaison Brandon Raco
Submission Date Sept. 2, 2020

STARS v2.2

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

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 4.00 / 4.00
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Campus Engagement

Is the institution utilizing its infrastructure and operations as a living laboratory for applied student learning for sustainability in relation to Campus Engagement?:
Yes

A brief description of the projects and how they contribute to understanding or advancing sustainability in relation to Campus Engagement:
The University of Guelph has always been at the forefront of community-led research, and the research and testing being conducted by our Sustainability Ambassadors right here on campus is no exception of that.

The Sustainability Ambassador Program provides students the opportunity to learn to develop, scale, and lead solution-oriented projects that target many of today’s most pressing sustainability issues – climate change, fast fashion, waste management, and biodiversity loss.

This student-powered, student-led program is developing the next generation of sustainability leaders who are trained in effectively communicating issues, experienced in project management, and understand how to target root causes.

Public Engagement 

Is the institution utilizing its infrastructure and operations as a living laboratory for applied student learning for sustainability in relation to Public Engagement?:
Yes

A brief description of the projects and how they contribute to understanding or advancing sustainability in relation to Public Engagement:
Through Student Affairs, Catalyst Experience Experiential Learning Program, students are provided the opportunity to participate in a Climate Justice Reading Week. The Climate Justice Reading Weeks provides undergraduate and graduate students an opportunity to explore, research and understand issues impacting the City of Guelph through a climate justice lens.

Air & Climate 

Is the institution utilizing its infrastructure and operations as a living laboratory for applied student learning for sustainability in relation to Air & Climate?:
Yes

A brief description of the projects and how they contribute to understanding or advancing sustainability in relation to Air & Climate:
The University of Guelph, Physical Resources department partners with third and fourth year Engineering Design courses by providing energy and emissions data to students. The students are able to utilize this data to develop solutions that mitigate GHG emissions and energy demand/consumption.

Buildings  

Is the institution utilizing its infrastructure and operations as a living laboratory for applied student learning for sustainability in relation to Buildings?:
Yes

A brief description of the projects and how they contribute to understanding or advancing sustainability in relation to Buildings:
The University of Guelph, Physical Resources department partners with third and fourth year Engineering Design courses by providing energy and emissions data to students. The students are able to utilize this data to develop solutions that improve the built form of campus to advance sustainability.

Energy 

Is the institution utilizing its infrastructure and operations as a living laboratory for applied student learning for sustainability in relation to Energy?:
Yes

A brief description of the projects and how they contribute to understanding or advancing sustainability in relation to Energy:
The University of Guelph, Physical Resources department partners with third and fourth year Engineering Design courses by providing energy and emissions data to students. The students are able to utilize this data to develop solutions that reduce demand/consumption.

An energy dashboard for the Thornbrough Engineering Building is installed to inform students on the building energy consumption. This information is readily available to students to utilize for experiential learning purposes.

Food & Dining 

Is the institution utilizing its infrastructure and operations as a living laboratory for applied student learning for sustainability in relation to Food & Dining?:
Yes

A brief description of the projects and how they contribute to understanding or advancing sustainability in relation to Food & Dining:
The Guelph Centre for Urban Organic Farming provides students experiential learning opportunities by growing produce and flowers. Students are also able to volunteer in the Coffee to Compost program, in which they collect coffee grounds from across campus, and deliver them to the GCUOF to be composted. This compost is then used as fertilizer at the GCUOF.

Grounds 

Is the institution utilizing its infrastructure and operations as a living laboratory for applied student learning for sustainability in relation to Grounds?:
Yes

A brief description of the projects and how they contribute to understanding or advancing sustainability in relation to Grounds:
The University of Guelph is a Bee City Canada Certified Campus. Partnering with the Grounds Department and Plant Agriculture, students have the opportunity to grow native pollinator seedlings, and plant them in designated pollinator gardens across campus.

Purchasing 

Is the institution utilizing its infrastructure and operations as a living laboratory for applied student learning for sustainability in relation to Purchasing?:
Yes

A brief description of the projects and how they contribute to understanding or advancing sustainability in relation to Purchasing:
The University of Guelph is a Fair Trade Certified Campus. This certification was the result of students and administration working together to pursue this certification.

Transportation 

Is the institution utilizing its infrastructure and operations as a living laboratory for applied student learning for sustainability in relation to Transportation?:
Yes

A brief description of the projects and how they contribute to understanding or advancing sustainability in relation to Transportation:
Partnering with the Department of Mathematics & Statistics, Parking Services works with Math and Stats students to identify opportunities to maximize the utility of parking to avoid expanding parking infrastructure. These students model different scenarios based on induced demand, and look at ways to reduce demand for parking.

Waste 

Is the institution utilizing its infrastructure and operations as a living laboratory for applied student learning for sustainability in relation to Waste?:
Yes

A brief description of the projects and how they contribute to understanding or advancing sustainability in relation to Waste:
The Ideas Congress course (ICON) is an experiential learning, interdisciplinary program which brings together undergraduate students from every academic program to solve the most pressing issues of our time.

In 2019, the ICON Course played an important role in researching the environmental and economic impacts of single-use plastics. This research was used to inform the single-use straw and bag ban put in place by Hospitality Services.

Water 

Is the institution utilizing its infrastructure and operations as a living laboratory for applied student learning for sustainability in relation to Water?:
Yes

A brief description of the projects and how they contribute to understanding or advancing sustainability in relation to Water:
The University of Guelph, Physical Resources department partners with third and fourth year Engineering Design courses by providing water use data to students. The students are able to utilize this data to develop solutions that reduce water consumption on campus.

Coordination & Planning 

Is the institution utilizing its infrastructure and operations as a living laboratory for applied student learning for sustainability in relation to Coordination & Planning?:
Yes

A brief description of the projects and how they contribute to understanding or advancing sustainability in relation to Coordination & Planning:
The Sustainability Office provides students guidance and mentorship on coordinating and implementing ideas that advance sustainability.

Diversity & Affordability 

Is the institution utilizing its infrastructure and operations as a living laboratory for applied student learning for sustainability in relation to Diversity & Affordability?:
No

A brief description of the projects and how they contribute to understanding or advancing sustainability in relation to Diversity & Affordability:
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Investment & Finance 

Is the institution utilizing its infrastructure and operations as a living laboratory for applied student learning for sustainability in relation to Investment & Finance?:
No

A brief description of the projects and how they contribute to understanding or advancing sustainability in relation to Investment & Finance:
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Wellbeing & Work 

Is the institution utilizing its infrastructure and operations as a living laboratory for applied student learning for sustainability in relation to Wellbeing & Work?:
No

A brief description of the projects and how they contribute to understanding or advancing sustainability in relation to Wellbeing & Work:
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Optional Fields 

Website URL where information about the institution’s living laboratory program 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.