| Overall Rating | Silver |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 53.92 |
| Liaison | Mat Thijssen |
| Submission Date | Oct. 26, 2021 |
University of Waterloo
OP-11: Sustainable Procurement
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
2.75 / 3.00 |
Mat
Thijssen Sustainability Manager Sustainability Office |
Does the institution have written policies, guidelines, or directives that seek to support sustainable purchasing across multiple commodity categories institution-wide?:
A copy of the policies, guidelines or directives:
The policies, guidelines or directives:
Waterloo’s Environmental Sustainability Strategy includes specific commitments to measure and increase sustainable procurement in commodity categories as outlined by STARS. Waterloo has also published a Sustainable Procurement guide for all employees to consider when making smaller purchases through departmental discretionary budgets, or for employees and students to use for personal purchases: https://uwaterloo.ca/sustainability/projects-and-initiatives/sustainable-procurement Lastly, Waterloo has also integrated into its RFP process a sustainability disclosure framework for corporate sustainability throughout its supply chain (i.e. on vendor policies, carbon emissions and other performance commitments, and supply chain management) in addition to product-specific requirements
Does the institution employ Life Cycle Cost Analysis (LCCA) when evaluating energy- and water-using products and systems?:
Which of the following best describes the institution’s use of LCCA?:
A brief description of the LCCA policy and/or practices:
Waterloo has developed a full lifecycle costing guideline and accompanying toolkit. LCC is mandatory for core compliance purchases (most energy/utility consuming infrastructure and vehicles), and strongly recommended for other energy consuming equipment such as IT equipment, Lab equipment, and appliances. https://uwaterloo.ca/secretariat/life-cycle-costing-guideline
Does the institution have published sustainability criteria to be applied when evaluating chemically intensive products and services?:
A brief description of the published sustainability criteria for chemically intensive products and services:
Waterloo’s Environmental Sustainability Strategy tracks cleaning products which are UL Ecologo, Green Seal certified, and further criteria on Ecologos and circular procurement can be found here: https://uwaterloo.ca/sustainability/projects-and-initiatives/sustainable-procurement/cleaning-products
Does the institution have published sustainability criteria to be applied when evaluating consumable office products?:
A brief description of the published sustainability criteria for consumable office products:
Waterloo’s sustainable procurement guide provides recommendations on certifications to look for, including Cradle to Cradle and UL Ecologo, as well as circular procurement criteria such as durability, recyclability, post-consumer recycled content, and/or vendor takeback programs
Does the institution have published sustainability criteria to be applied when evaluating furniture and furnishings?:
A brief description of the published sustainability criteria for furniture and furnishings:
Waterloo’s sustainable procurement guide provides recommendations on certifications to look for, including Cradle to Cradle, Green Label Plus, and UL LEVEL certifications, as well as circular procurement criteria such as durability, recyclability, post-consumer recycled content, and/or vendor take-back programming, packaging reduction, and purchasing minimization by using Waterloo’s internal furniture reuse service:
https://uwaterloo.ca/sustainability/projects-and-initiatives/sustainable-procurement/furniture
Does the institution have published sustainability criteria to be applied when evaluating Information technology (IT) and equipment?:
A brief description of the published sustainability criteria for Information Technology (IT) and equipment:
Waterloo’s Sustainability Office and IST group are collaborating on specific criteria to be integrated into key contracts for computing devices, and the Procurement Guide provides criteria for distributed purchases from decentralized purchases or for individual purchases, including EnergySTAR and EPEAT Certification, TCO Certification, circular procurement (recycled content, reuse/recyclability, durability, etc.), and virtualization.
https://uwaterloo.ca/sustainability/projects-and-initiatives/sustainable-procurement/information-technology-it
Does the institution have published sustainability criteria to be applied when evaluating food service providers?:
A brief description of the published sustainability criteria for food service providers:
Does the institution have published sustainability criteria to be applied when evaluating garments and linens?:
A brief description of the published sustainability criteria for garments and linens:
Does the institution have published sustainability criteria to be applied when evaluating professional service providers?:
A brief description of the published sustainability criteria for professional service providers:
As part of its sustainable investing policy and framework, Waterloo considers experience integrating ESG factors in the selection of portfolio managers.
Does the institution have published sustainability criteria to be applied when evaluating transportation and fuels?:
A brief description of the published sustainability criteria for transportation and fuels:
Website URL where information about the institution’s sustainable procurement program or initiatives is available:
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.