WINNIPEG, MB – The University of Winnipeg’s Board of Regents approved a comprehensive new sustainability plan aimed at strengthening eco-friendly practices in all aspects of campus life on Monday, January 23, 2012. Ten specific goals will guide actions over the next four years including: surpassing Kyoto Protocol commitments to reduce greenhouse gas emissions 10% below 1990 levels by 2016; reducing water consumption on campus; and diverting 65% of all waste through composting and recycling by 2014.
UWinnipeg passed its Sustainability Policy in 2006 and since then has become an eco-leader – the first university in Canada to ban bottled water for sale, eliminating thousands of plastic water bottles which had been sold on campus annually, and the first to introduce a sustainable, locally sourced food service on campus called Diversity Foods. The Globe & Mail Canadian University Report 2012 ranks UWinnipeg first in Canada for its environmental commitment.
“Our students are part of a generation dedicated to tackling the important global challenge posed by climate change,” said UWinnipeg President and Vice-Chancellor, Dr. Lloyd Axworthy. “We know that we have to lead by example and demonstrate that changing our behaviours, our thinking and our policies is not only possible, it is critical.”
“The UWinnipeg Sustainability Strategy is an important step in the ongoing implementation of our Sustainability Policy. Our Policy is based on three pillars: reducing our use of natural resources, minimizing – and eventually eliminating – the harmful impacts of the resources we use and most importantly, making it common practice for each department to operate with these first two pillars in mind,” said Manager of Campus Sustainability, Alana Lajoie-O’Malley. “This Strategy will help us make significant strides on all counts.”
Eco-friendly initiatives on campus
UWinnipeg is engaged in numerous action-oriented initiatives aimed at creating a more sustainable campus and city:
- Installing a hybrid heating system that will enable the University to replace higher-emitting natural gas with lower-emitting hydro electricity during off-peak times
- A major water retrofit project so all bathrooms on campus will be outfitted with low-flow toilets and sinks
- Opened the UWSA Bike Lab to promote active and sustainable transit options for students, staff and the surrounding community. The Bike Lab offers free year-round programming including bike maintenance and safety workshops
- Following an in-depth LEED certification process by the Canada Green Building Council, both McFeetors Hall: Great-West Life Student Residence and The University of Winnipeg Students’ Association Daycare Centre joined an elite group of eco-friendly buildings in Manitoba by achieving Silver LEED status in November.
- An expanded recycling program to accommodate everything that is recycled at home except glass. This fall UWinnipeg also partnered with the Forks Renewal Corporation to send all campus food scraps, containers and cutlery to the Forks to be turned into compost for landscaping, allowing for a neighbourhood-level solution to waste management
- Introduced phosphate-free detergents and environmentally friendly cleaning products for use on campus
- Introduced double-sided printing as default on all copiers and printers on campus
- In partnership with the Manitoba government, is testing how well low-speed electric vehicles work in winter. The vehicles will shuttle from building to building on campus.
MEDIA CONTACT
Diane Poulin, Communications Officer, The University of Winnipeg
P: 204.988.7135, E: d.poulin@uwinnipeg.ca
