| Overall Rating | Silver |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 59.36 |
| Liaison | Ben Dharmendra |
| Submission Date | July 30, 2021 |
University of Sydney
EN-3: Student Life
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
1.75 / 2.00 |
Zoe
Morrison Strategy Advisor Strategy Office |
Does the institution have an active student group focused on sustainability?:
Name and a brief description of the active student groups focused on sustainability:
The University student Union supports a number of sustainability-related clubs and societies including Animal Welfare Society, Engineers Without Boarders, Mental Awareness and Health Society, Queers of Colour, Sustainable Oceans Alliance, United Nations Society, Project Hope, Wildlife Society and Waste Fighters.
https://usu.edu.au/
Does the institution have a garden, farm, community supported agriculture (CSA) or fishery program, or an urban agriculture project where students are able to gain experience in organic agriculture and sustainable food systems?:
A brief description of the gardens, farms, community supported agriculture (CSA) or fishery programs, and/or urban agriculture projects:
The University has a sustainable community garden on our Camperdown/Darlington campus where students have opportunities to explore gardening, sustainable food growing, and the community garden community also run 'how-to' classes (pre-COVID).
https://www.facebook.com/USYD-Community-Garden-546500095418512/
Does the institution have a student-run enterprise that includes sustainability as part of its mission statement or stated purpose?:
A brief description of the student-run enterprises:
The USydney Food Coop is run by students and volunteers and is supported by the University of Sydney Union.
https://usu.edu.au/Clubs-Societies/Our-Clubs/Just-for-fun/Food-Co-op.aspx
Does the institution have a sustainable investment fund, green revolving fund, or sustainable microfinance initiative through which students can develop socially, environmentally and fiscally responsible investment and financial skills?:
A brief description of the sustainable investment funds, green revolving funds or sustainable microfinance initiatives:
The University of Sydney Genesis Program is an inhouse program that exists to support the most promising startups through mentoring from experts, assistance with media exposure and a final award of $25,000. It is open to all staff, students and alumni with previous winners often providing peer-to-peer mentoring of new applicants. There have been a number of sustainability-related starts come from the program including Receivables - a platform that platform offers businesses the opportunity to seamlessly manage their responsible business practices (from metrics, standards, projects and reporting) in a user-friendly and integrated way.
https://www.sydney.edu.au/business/study/student-experience/sydney-genesis.html
https://www.sydney.edu.au/news-opinion/news/2020/11/11/responsible-business-platform-wins-sydney-genesis-startup-compet.html
Has the institution hosted a conference, speaker series, symposium, or similar event focused on sustainability during the previous three years that had students as the intended audience?:
A brief description of the conferences, speaker series, symposia, or similar events focused on sustainability:
The University public programs are open to all members of the University and wider community. Events that have specifically aimed for students as an audience include Sustainability Week hosted by the USU, an interactive Sustainability-intensive festival that lasts for 3 days at the end of April. Innovation Week in 2020 was aligned with the SDGs and has a number of student-oriented events including a student hack-a-thons which attracted over 199 entries.
https://www.sydney.edu.au/engage/events-sponsorships/connect-for-festival.html#studentchallenges
Has the institution hosted a cultural arts event, installation, or performance focused on sustainability with the previous three years that had students as the intended audience?:
A brief description of the cultural arts events, installations, or performances focused on sustainability:
The University has three museums and galleries on its Camperdown/Darling campus including the Tin Sheds Gallery that creates exhibitions specifically for students. The University is also a participant in the Sydney light-based festival, VIVID, where students have displayed installations and have held their own installations on campus.
Innovation Week 2020 presented the Dhuwarr exhibition – looking at the celebration of Gomeroi grasses and placemaking. The installation brought stories from Gamilaraay Country to life. These stories were the protagonists of Dhuwarr: a celebration of Gomeroi grasses, grains and placemaking. The installation shares an insight into techniques, flora and environments including those involved in the complex task of bread-making.
https://www.sydney.edu.au/architecture/news-and-events/events/subaqueous.html
https://www.sydney.edu.au/news-opinion/news/2020/10/07/dhuwarr-a-celebration-of-gomeroi-grasses-grains-and-placemaking.html
https://www.sydney.edu.au/engage/visit/museums-theatres-galleries.html
Does the institution have a wilderness or outdoors program that follow Leave No Trace principles?:
A brief description of the wilderness or outdoors programs that follow Leave No Trace principles:
Has the institution had a sustainability-focused theme chosen for a themed semester, year, or first-year experience during the previous three years?:
A brief description of the sustainability-focused themes chosen for themed semesters, years, or first-year experiences:
Does the institution have a program through which students can learn sustainable life skills?:
A brief description of the programs through which students can learn sustainable life skills:
The University teams up with the insurer, Allianz, to co-fund programs for international students on:
-Home cooking skills to reduce takeaway and packaging (run in student accommodation)
-Cycling skills in Sydney and bike workshops with City of Sydney – using cycle paths and making use of the campus bike shop and other facilities
Does the institution offer sustainability-focused student employment opportunities?:
A brief description of the sustainability-focused student employment opportunities offered by the institution:
Does the institution have a graduation pledge through which students pledge to consider social and environmental responsibility in future job and other decisions?:
A brief description of the graduation pledge(s):
The University of Sydney does not undertake a Graduation Pledge
A brief description of other co-curricular sustainability programs and initiatives that do not fall into one of the above categories:
The University's pre-entry program for students at the Centre for English Teaching has a unit focused on Sustainability. The unit is specifically for international students with conditional offers, and helps to develop their academic English language skills.
https://www.sydney.edu.au/cet/
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.