WINNIPEG, MB – The University of Winnipeg is launching a series of free events to celebrate Earth Month (April) and promote sustainable practices on campus.
1) Sustainability in Action: Film Launch and Panel, April 1, 2015
12:30 to 1:30 p.m., Eckhardt-Gramatté Hall – Watch the film here!
We are pleased to premiere The Creative Campus: Living Sustainability, created by Dr. Ian Mauro, renowned academic, filmmaker and UWinnipeg faculty member (Geography). This event is free, and everyone is welcome. Screening is followed by a panel discussion featuring Ian Mauro, Associate Professor, Geography; Melanie O’Gorman, Assistant Professor, Economics; and Jim Silver, Chair, Urban and Inner City Studies.
2) Student Move Out: Give & Go from April 10-25, 2015
Multiple locations all over campus, specifically in student residences.
The focus is on keeping usable material out of landfill, repurposing small appliances and dorm necessities for next year’s move-in, and appropriate recycling of materials.
3) Kids April Craft Activity Day At Gallery 1C03, Saturday, April 18, 2015 from 1:00—4:00 pm
Gallery 1C03’s current exhibit, him and me by Winnipeg artist Peter Tittenberger, features collaged Polaroid photographs, non-functional ceramics, and sculptures made from reclaimed wood and other found objects. Through his re-use of discarded materials, Tittenberger emphasizes the importance of sustainable “making.”
Kids are invited to walk through the exhibit and they will be given recycled materials to create their own sculptures. The sculptures will take the form of mobiles, which they may choose to leave at Gallery 1C03 for public exhibition alongside Tittenberger’s work on April 25 in tandem with Earth Day celebrations. Materials to be used may include hangers, puzzle pieces, yarn, zippers, foam, fabric, nuts, bolts, and cardboard. Gallery 1C03 is located at UWinnipeg, 515 Portage Ave, in the main building – Centennial Hall. Everyone welcome.
4) Office Spring Cleaning from April 10-22, 2015
Drop offs at the Sustainability Office (3rd Floor, 599 Portage Ave)
The event focus is on helping to get dispose of office items that are still in usable condition. We will repurpose items on campus where we can, and donate the rest.
5) 10:00 am – Sacred ceremony -April 22, Earth Day – NOTE LOCATION CHANGED TO BULMAN CENTRE
Keewatin Ochichak Singers (an all female drum group) conduct a drum ceremony to honour Mother Earth. 515 Portage Avenue. Hosted by UWinnipeg’s Indigenous Advisory Circle.
6) 12:30 pm – Seed Starting Workshop- on Earth Day – April 22
Near Bike Lab, main campus (515 Portage Ave)
Starting seeds for the UWSA community garden plots, including the UWSA daycare’s plots. Seedlings in excess after they grow will be offered to the campus community.
7) Secret Spaces Tour – Thursday, April 23 – from noon-1:30 pm. Reservation required.
Have you ever wondered what it takes to dramatically reduce greenhouse gas emissions from old buildings? Or how to run a composting program in a large institution? Or what it means to build a ‘green building’? Join Kyle MacDonald, Building Systems Manager and Alana Lajoie-O’Malley, Director of the Campus Sustainability Office for a chance to see what goes on behind the scenes to make The University of Winnipeg a greener campus. Space is limited. RSVP to sustainability@uwinnipeg.ca to reserve your spot.
8) Balloon Launch – Friday, April 24 – FortWhyte Alive
A University of Winnipeg team called the UW Cloud Punchers (CWE-HABEX) will launch a high altitude balloon equipped with a camera and sensors for recording atmospheric data as part of an international initiative. The balloon launch is planned for 8:00 am on Friday, April 24 (with alternate weather dates of the 23rd or 25th) from FortWhyte Alive, at 1961 McCreary Road. Six students with the University of Winnipeg Geography & Environmental Students Association, along with three faculty members, are participating in the Canada-Wide Experiment (CWE) called the High Altitude Balloon Experiment (HABEX) with all of the teams launching balloons the third week of April. Using an open-source flight system developed at the University of Regina, universities and high schools are gathering, analyzing, and sharing environmental data and high definition video from the edge of space. The UWinnipeg experiment will measure global time, GPS position, ultraviolet/infrared/visible light, barometric pressure, temperature, acceleration, angular rotation and magnetic field. The data will be sent to the University of Regina and the video footage will be available for public viewing at the UWinnipeg Science Rendezvous which takes place on May 9 at the Richardson College for the Environment and Science Complex.
Contact sustainability@uwinnipeg.ca for more information
BACKGROUND
The University of Winnipeg has put sustainable practices at the core of our mission. We have been a leader in Canada on a number of fronts:
- Surpassing our Kyoto goal to cut campus greenhouse gas emissions
- Banning the sale of plastic water bottles on campus – a highly successful student-led campaign with administration support that has been replicated by universities across North America
- Creating a food service on campus that is dedicated to locally-sourced, nutritious and sustainable options for students (award-winning Diversity Foods)
- Creating a Vice-President position encompassing sustainability so that sustainable considerations are part of the senior executive decision making
- Ensuring new buildings on campus are “green” meeting Silver and Gold LEED requirements
- Retrofitting older buildings on campus with energy efficient heating and plumbing to reduce energy consumption
- Promoting active transportation to and from campus with a Bike Lab and rapid transit terminal at Balmoral station: student-led Eco Bus Pass in the works
- Creating and nurturing the next generation of scholars, researchers and activists tackling climate change through our Richardson College of the Environment
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MEDIA CONTACT
Diane Poulin, Senior Communications Specialist, The University of Winnipeg
P: 204.988.7135, E: d.poulin@uwinnipeg.ca
