Overall Rating Platinum
Overall Score 85.74
Liaison Mike Wilson
Submission Date Dec. 13, 2023

STARS v2.2

University of Victoria
EN-11: Inter-Campus Collaboration

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 3.00 / 3.00 Claire Irvine
Sustainability Coordinator
Campus Planning and Sustainability
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Is the institution currently a member of a national or international higher education sustainability network?:
Yes

The name of the national or international sustainability network(s):
The Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE)

UNITAR-CIFAL Global Network

Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN)

Knowledge for Change (K4C) Consortium

United Nations Global Compact Principles for Responsible Management Education (PRME)

India-Canada Centre for Innovative Multidisciplinary Partnerships to Accelerate Community Transformation and Sustainability (IC-IMPACTS)

Canada-Inuit Nunangat-United Kingdom Arctic Research Programme (CINUK)

Talloires Network of Engaged Universities

The Shastri Indo-Canadian Institute

The Association of Commonwhealth Universities

The Network of Business Sustsainability (NBS)

Does the institution actively participate in a regional, state/provincial, or local higher education sustainability network?:
Yes

The name of the regional, state/provincial or local sustainability network(s):
Pacific Institute for Climate Solutions (PICS )
https://pics.uvic.ca/

ONC - Ocean Networks Canada
https://www.oceannetworks.ca/

CIFAL - International Training Centre for Authorities
https://www.uvic.ca/about-uvic/cifal/index.php

ACET - Accelerating Community Energy Transformation
https://www.uvic.ca/research-innovation/research-at-uvic/climate-environmental-change-and-sustainability/community-energy-transition/index.php

SDSN - Sustainable Development Solutions Network
https://www.unsdsn.org/

Canadian Bureau for International Education (CBIE)
https://cbie.ca/

BC Council for International Education (BCIE)
https://bccie.bc.ca/

Universities Canada
https://www.univcan.ca/

Has the institution presented at a higher education sustainability conference during the previous year?:
Yes

A list or brief description of the conference(s) and presentation(s):
Conference: UN PRME Global Compact Forum
With a dynamic program and purpose-driven speakers, the 2023 Edition of the PRME Global Forum provided a global debate on how business education can help advance the sustainable development agenda worldwide. The Principles for Responsible Management Education gathered business school leaders, faculty, students, businesses and sustainable development organizations for a Responsible Management Education Week, on 12 - 16 June 2023, in New York (USA), to advance responsible management education and its impact worldwide
Presentation: Sustainability Centre Leaders Knowledge Exchange
In this interactive session, sustainability centre leaders will work together to address the "nuts
and bolts" challenges of running a centre. They'll share questions and answers related to centre
research, teaching, outreach, and administration.

Has the institution submitted a case study during the previous year to an external higher education sustainability resource center or awards program?:
Yes

A list or brief description of the sustainability resource center or awards program and submission(s):
CAUBO, the Canadian Association of University Business Officers, is a non-profit organization founded in 1937 that represents chief administrative and financial officers at over 100 universities and affiliated colleges in Canada. With a mission to provide a national perspective on matters related to higher education administration, CAUBO focuses on strengthening the capacity of leaders in the sector, fostering collaboration among institutions, and enabling excellence in Canadian higher education administration.

In 2022, UVic actively participated in the CAUBO Quality and Productivity (Q&P) Awards, designed to recognize innovative practices in Canadian higher education administration. The university's submission featured the UVic Employee E-Bike Loan Pilot Program, a collaborative initiative by Campus Security and the Office of Campus Planning & Sustainability.

The program aimed to promote sustainable transportation among university employees by providing interest-free loans for E-Bikes. UVic showcased the initiative's efficiency and inclusivity through a streamlined application process and the allocation of 100 loans. Importantly, the collaboration extended beyond campus, involving preferred E-Bike suppliers with sustainability leadership and utilizing third-party sustainability ratings.

Has the institution had employees or students serving on a board or committee of a sustainability network or conference during the previous three years?:
Yes

A list or brief description of the board or committee appointment(s):
Business School Associate Professor sits on UN PRME North American Chapter

Business School Associate Professor sits on UN PRME Sharing Information in Progress (SIP) Report Awards Committee

Business School Associate Professor sits on UN PRME Sharing Information in Progress (SIP) Reporting Guidelines Committee

Business School Assistant Teaching Professor sits on UN PRME Impactful Five Expert Pedagogy Group to develop a playbook and assessment framework around responsible management education

Business School Professor sits on planning commitee for the PLACE Dialogues - a conference to gather open discussion around building sustainable and resilient communities

Business School Professors sits on planning committee for the Victoria Forum - a conference at the University of Victoria which invited over 500 individuals from across the globe to connect and tackle some difficult issues and discuss solutions for bridging economic, social and environmental divides.

Does the institution have an ongoing mentoring relationship with another institution through which it assists the institution with its sustainability reporting and/or the development of its sustainability program?:
Yes

A brief description of the mentoring relationship and activities:
Public Sector Climate Action Leadership Symposium
Each year UVic attends the Public Sector Climate Action Leadership Symposium which focuses on the Greenhouse Gas Emission Reporting Regulation Act and how various sectors of the public, including Universities, can best work towards reducing its carbon footprint.

Specifically, there are several sessions on how to reduce GHGs, in which universities share ways they have been able to improve operations on their campus so that other universities in attendance may learn from them (fleet electrification, building heating and cooling, etc). These sessions are often followed by working groups in which representatives from Universities can collaborate together and mentor each other on topics of sustainability on campus. Regular universities that attend (aside from UVic) include but are not limited to: University of British Columbia, Simon Fraser University, University of Northern British Columbia, Thompson Rivers University, Royal Roads University, Capilano University, Vancouver Island University, Langara College, and British Columbia Institute of Technology.

CIFAL Victoria
Through CIFAL Victoria, UVic developed and implements specific training programs for staff from universities in south Asia in advancing the Sustainable Development Goals, with hybrid and in person executive programs such as the 'SDG Executive Training for executive and leaders'.
Also through the CIFAL Global Network, UVic participates in monthly meetings hosted by UNITAR where ~30 institutions across the globe share knowledge and collaborate in advancing the Sustainable Development Goals, and holds 1-1 meetings with alies from other national and international CIFAL centers.
The office of Strategic Research Programs at the Vice President of Research and Innovation provides mentoring support to other universities in the development of systems for tracking their SDG advancement for international rankings.

Business School Associate Professor presented at the University of Ottawa's business school on UN PRME membership and reporting

Has the institution had employees or students serving as peer reviewers of another institution’s sustainability data and/or STARS submission during the previous three years?:
Yes

A brief description of the peer review activities:
UVic shares and reviews energy consumption data with UBC and SFU at several research centres (Bamfield Marine Centre; TRIUMF Research Centre). This peer-reviewed data is then used towards our annual greenhouse gas emissions reporting.

Optional Fields 

A brief description of other inter-campus collaborative efforts around sustainability during the previous year :
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Website URL where information about the institution’s inter-campus collaborations is available:
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Additional documentation to support the submission:
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Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
Pacific Institute for Climate Solutions (PICS )

PICS is hosted and led by the University of Victoria in collaboration with the University of British Columbia, Simon Fraser University, and the University of Northern British Columbia. It is a user engaged institute that convenes solution seekers and research partners to co-design, co-develop and co-deliver impactful climate solutions for British Columbia, Canada, and potentially the world.

ONC - Ocean Networks Canada

Ocean Networks Canada (ONC) is a world-leading ocean observing facility hosted and owned by the University of Victoria (UVic), and managed and operated by the ONC Society, a not-for-profit established in 2007. ONC delivers ocean data from its cabled, mobile and community-based observing networks that represent an essential component of Canada’s ocean observing science capacity.
By bringing data to the surface, ONC provides ocean intelligence to scientists, governments, organizations, and citizens. Ocean data are archived, processed and made freely available via ONC’s data management system, Oceans 3.0.

CIFAL

The United Nations Institute of Training and Research (UNITAR) and the University of Victoria have established the first accredited International Training Centre for Authorities and Leaders (known by the French acronym CIFAL) on North America's west coast.

CIFAL Victoria, based at UVic, joins a global network of 31 training centres. The main purpose of these centres is to develop and strengthen our ability to better respond to challenges and facilitate City-to-City partnerships.

ACET - Accelerating Community Energy Transformation

Accelerating Community Energy Transformation (ACET) is a multi-partner research initiative helping small- to-mid-sized communities achieve their unique clean-energy systems goals.

From harvesting offshore wind, tidal and solar energy to innovative low-carbon financing and governance models, ACET is integrating breakthrough renewable energy technologies and solutions that will help Canada get to net zero emissions—one community at a time.

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.