University of Prince Edward Island 2006 Campus Sustainability Achievement Award Application
Category
Four-year and graduate institutions 1,001 – 10,000 student FTE
Contact
Dr. Almut Beringer
Associate Professor and Director, Environmental Studies and Sustainability
University of Prince Edward Island
Charlottetown, PE
(902) 566-0509
aberinger@upei.ca
Governance & Administration
Sustainability in higher education efforts at the University of Prince Edward Island, Canada began in earnest in mid-2004 with the University creating the position of Director, Environmental Studies and Sustainability. This is a faculty appointment, combining research and teaching with operational ‘greening the campus’ duties. As such, the position is unique in Canada (the only other position similarly bridging academia with practice is at the University of Toronto, Canada’s largest university). The position mandate highlights creating a ‘culture of sustainability’ on campus; UPEI being only the second university in the country – following the University of British Columbia – to seek to implement a campus-wide sustainability strategy.
Under the leadership of the Director of Environmental Studies and Sustainability, the Sustainable UPEI Project was launched in early 2005. It is administered through the UPEI Campus Sustainability Office, created simultaneously. ‘Sustainable UPEI’ is the unifying framework through which all sustainable development innovations and transformations (research, curriculum/teaching, physical operations) are managed and communicated.
Under the auspices of ‘Sustainable UPEI,’ the following milestones have been achieved:
Committees:
- Campus Master Plan Steering Committee – 2003-2005, included a Sustainability Committee
- Energy Awareness Program Committee – multi-stakeholder, cross-campus committee on energy efficiency/reducing energy consumption; established by the Vice-President Finance & Facilities mid-2004
- Energy Awareness Program Sub-Committee Activities – ditto
- U-Pass Task Force – multi-stakeholder, on- and off-campus representatives, since May 2005
- Sustainability Task Force/Sustainable UPEI Advisory Committee – multi-stakeholder, cross-campus committee, to begin work September 2006, Terms of Reference submitted to senior administration June 2006
Staff positions:
- Director, Environmental Studies and Sustainability, created June 2004
- Chair, Energy Awareness Program, created mid-2004
- Student position in the UPEI Campus Sustainability Office, as of September 2006
Policies:
- Room temperatures operational guideline, February 2005
- campus sustainability strategy (draft), fall 2005
- energy strategy (proposal, under discussion), November 2005
Declarations:
- Talloires Declaration, proposal to sign submitted to UPEI President, November 2005 – under consideration
Major guiding documents:
- Campus Master Plan, ratified December 2005, chapter on Sustainability and sustainability principles throughout the document
Organizational memberships:
- Sierra Youth Coalition of Canada Sustainable Campuses/Academia to Action Project (SYC A2A) institutional member, since November 2004
- Energy Action/SYC A2A Campus Climate Challenge
- National Wildlife Federation Campus Ecology Program, since summer 2006
- planned: AASHE membership (US$ 1000 annual membership fee exceeds current budget)
Other examples of institutional commitment to sustainability:
- The Natural Step sustainability management system, joint proposal with GPI Atlantic to UPEI senior management, November 2005 – under consideration
- annual reporting, first annual UPEI Sustainability Report, December 2005
- regular sustainability audits, first campus sustainability audit July 2005, to be repeated every threeyears
- VP Finance & Facilities project seed funding, e.g. for campus-wide GHG emissions assessment, summer 2005; bicycle bursary program, fall 2005
Operations
Parallel to creating the Director of Environmental Studies/Director of Campus Sustainability position, UPEI senior administration, through the Office of Vice-President Finance & Facilities, launched an energy awareness campaign. A multi-stakeholder, cross-campus Energy Awareness Program Committee (EAPC) was appointed; it is comprised of faculty, staff and student representatives and off-campus community members, including staff from the utility service provider. The EAPC is charged with leading the campus toward reduced energy consumption. Its activities incorporate infrastructure (new and existing buildings) and a campus community education and buy-in campaign. Other operations innovations are led by the UPEI Campus Sustainability Office or have been initiated by UPEI Facilities Management.
Energy:
- energy surveys (2004, 2005) indicated strong support for energy efficiency and interest in energy education
- Energy Awareness Fairs (see Community Service and Outreach)
- building systems/energy retrofit 2004/’05, expected annual savings: ~ 11.348 GJ; $ 175,783; 2071
- ronnes GHG emissions toward 8% energy consumption reduction target
- metering/monitoring of energy consumption per building, since 2005
- renewable energy: hydrogen cell research (Hydrogen Village project), on-campus wind turbine/partnership with provincial wind energy consortium, collaboration in provincial biodiesel initiative feasibility studies (all underway)
- campus-wide GHG emissions assessment, summer 2005
- proposal for campus energy strategy (see Policies above)
Building:
- LEED Gold extension and renovation of Marian Hall
- New Student Residence has ‘green’ building features
- CBIP-certification of current and future constructions
- accessibility audit, improvements and strategy underway; initiated by UPEI Campus Sustainability Office, guided by Student Services
Food:
- UPEI Residence, Food & Conference Services introduced organic, fair trade coffee in UPEI cafeterias fall 2005
- membership in local CSA farm to supply local, organic food; proposed winter 2006 – under consideration
- eliminating styrofoam from cafeterias, since mid-2005 – in progress
- lug-a-mug campaign, since fall 2005
Transportation:
UPEI Sustainable Transport Initiative (total project value CDN$136,000), since 2005; includes:
- campus transportation survey, incl. modal split and bike rack surveys, summer/fall 2005
- TDM strategy, in planning
- bicycle bursary program, since September 2005
- new, modern bike racks installed, fall 2005
- additional shower as bicycle end-trip facility in Marian Hall renovation
- U-Pass under negotiation since inception of a Charlottetown public transit system May 2005
- rideshare board/on-line carpool matching service, since winter 2005
- dedicated carpool carparking spaces, under negotiation
- carparking fee restructure, negotiations since 2005
- external grant applications; $37,475 from Environment Canada
Land use:
- feasibility study of fossil fuel-free lawnmowing/ecological restoration to natural greenspace, winter 2006
- UPEI already pesticide-, fertilizer- and chemical-free
Purchasing:
- 100% post-consumer recycled paper available in Campus Printery since fall 2005
Waste:
- feasibility study on measures to improve recycling compliance in Residences, winter 2006
- waste sorting into compost, recyclables, waste (mandated by Province)
Janitorial services:
- already ‘green’ cleaning products
Water:
- low-flow faucets in Student Centre and other new buildings/renovations
- waterless urinals being trialed
Curriculum & Research
UPEI has offered an interdisciplinary, cross-faculty Environmental Studies minor since 2001. The degree emphasizes human-environment interactions and multidisciplinary analysis of environmental issues. Its core theme of ‘interdisciplinarity’ was expanded to a second theme, ‘sustainability,’ in 2004. Since then, and since the appointment of an Academic Director, project-based sustainability learning has become the defining feature of the program. In particular, the UPEI campus is conceived of as a ‘learning laboratory’ or experimental site for sustainability practice with a focus on experiential learning. In their Environmental Studies classes, students undertake ‘sustainability apprenticeships,’ learning research and writing, critical thinking, presentation skills and the theory of sustainability via practical campus sustainability projects which make a lasting difference. As such, student learning is integrated closely with campus operations and ‘best practice’ research toward transforming the campus into a sustainable community. The experiential pedagogy is monitored and evaluated by an accompanying action research project, The campus as a learning laboratory.
In addition, the Environmental Studies Program/UPEI Campus Sustainability Office conducts informal sustainability education; in this role, it seeks close collaboration with the UPEI Student Environmental Society. The Office also maintains close ties with the Sierra Youth Coalition Sustainable Campuses Project. The incorporation of the Student Environmental Society within the Student Union in fall 2005 – the first time UPEI has had an active student environment/sustainability group – is a direct result of the Sustainable UPEI Project and its links with SYC A2A.
Specific Curriculum & Research activities have included:
Academic programs, i.e. Faculty of Arts Environmental Studies Program:
- adds ‘sustainability’ as second core theme, 2004
- adds core subject ENV 202 Introduction to Sustainability, winter 2005
- inaugural Director begins work 1 January 2005
- redesigned to make project-based sustainability learning core pedagogical approach, early 2005
- Bachelor of Arts (Environmental Studies) and Bachelor of Science (Environmental Studies) proposals submitted, to begin 1 September 2007
- graduate studies in planning
Endowed positions:
- Director, Environmental Studies – since January 2005
- Director, Campus Sustainability – since January 2005
- UPEI Campus Sustainability Office student position, funded by Environment Canada – since September 2006, guaranteed until April 2008
Graduation requirements:
- ENV 202 Introduction to Sustainability for Environmental Studies minor and proposed majors
Major research initiatives:
- comprehensive campus sustainability audit, January - July 2005
- GHG emissions assessment, summer 2005
- campus transportation survey, summer/fall 2005
- region-wide sustainability in higher education in Atlantic Canada performance assessment, 2005/’06 – included a paid student research assistant position
- campus sustainable development feasibility studies, January - July 2006
- nation-wide sustainability in higher education performance assessment, in progress
- supervision assistance in the CSAF revision, ongoing
Academic centres and research institutes:
- UPEI Campus Sustainability Office – best practice research
Other efforts:
- external funding applications
Publications:
- UPEI campus sustainability audit 2005, June 2005 (346 pages)
- UPEI sustainable development feasibility studies, July 2006 (355 pages)
- UPEI sustainability report 2005
- Sustainability in higher education in Atlantic Canada study (co-authors T. Wright, L. Malone),
Community Service and Outreach
As the only degree-granting post-secondary institution in Canada’s smallest province, the University of Prince Edward Island holds a leadership position in the community. UPEI takes this mandate very seriously: university-community interaction is emphasized in the institutional and a faculty member’s commitment of service perhaps more than at many other universities. Especially with respect to sustainability and sustainable development, the broader community watches very closely the efforts, knowledge and innovations coming out of UPEI, to be emulated in the government and private sectors. As such, communication and outreach to the on-campus and off-campus communities as well as close collaboration with community partners plays a central role in sustainability initiatives at UPEI. Community Service and Outreach activities have included:
Public outreach:
- Energy Awareness Week, including Energy Fair (October 2004, October 2005)
- media relations (radio interviews, newspaper articles)
- sustainability knowledge transfer and capacity-building with campus neighbors via presentations and meetings
- participation in the regional, national and international campus sustainability movement (SYC A2A, NECSC, AASHE)
Internal outreach/cooperation with
- UPEI Student Environmental Society
- UPEI Advancement Services – setting up alumni/ae donations to fund campus sustainability projects
- Student Union re: sustainability levy/U-Pass student fees increase
- Sustainable UPEI Project updates in Faculty of Arts and Faculty of Science newsletters
- presentation to Board of Governors, planned for fall 2006
Community partnerships and collaborations:
- the UPEI Campus Sustainability Office is a member of PEI Eco-Net
- PEI Climate Change Hub
- PEI Public Transit Coalition, incl. PEI Public Transit Social Equity Task Force
- City of Charlottetown, Trius Tours (Charlottetown town public transit operator), Holland College (community college) re: U-Pass
- Ecology Action Centre/TRAX Halifax, N.S. re: Sustainable Transport Initiative
- supporter of the community-based Commuter Challenge, June 2005
- local CSA farm and Farmers’ Market
- Maritime Electric (utility provider)
- Province of PEI re: Renewable Energy Act 2015
Events:
- participant, 1st Sierra Youth Coalition Sustainable Campuses Atlantic Canada regional conference, February 2006