Engagement
Level-Up program
In January 2022, the Sustainability Ambassador Program officially became part of Level-Up, TMU’s official co-curricular program that enables students to earn micro-credentials while getting involved on campus. Level-Up helps students gain recognition for their involvement outside of the classroom and presents an official record to prospective employers and graduate schools to complement their academic transcript. By fulfilling the requirements of the Sustainability Ambassador Program, students automatically receive a badge that can be displayed on their resume and/or Linkedin profile to demonstrate knowledge of sustainability.
Climate change communications workshops
In January 2022, the Sustainability Office collaborated with TMU’s Leadership Lab to support Generation Climate (external link) - a three-year project to address awareness and misinformation surrounding climate challenges and solutions amongst young Canadians through peer to peer education. Twenty-one sustainability ambassadors participated in sessions focused on the basics of climate change, how to talk about solutions, addressing common misinformation, and how to communicate climate change to your friends, family, and community.
21 sustainability ambassadors
participated in a 2 hour training session delivered by experts at Generation Climate.
1,200 students attended workshops led by Ambassadors on climate change communications.
Sustainability Residence Leaders Program
The Sustainability Residence Leadership Program was launched in Fall 2021 in partnership with Housing & Residence. The goal of the program is to empower students and support sustainable behaviours across the residence community. The program covers the Daphne Cockwell Health Sciences Complex, the International Living / Learning Centre and the Pitman Hall residences.
In year one of the program 5 residence leaders completed initiatives including:
Conducting a residence waste survey
Developing and distributing improved waste signage
Hosting a Track your Waste even
Supporting Eco Residence Move Out
Green labs pilot program
TMU is home to over 900+ undergraduate and research labs across 40 buildings. Lab spaces are among the most resource intensive spaces at universities and typically consume between 5 to 10 times more energy, 4 times more water and can generate more waste than classrooms or offices.
A Green Labs Program was piloted in Fall 2021 by the Sustainability Office in consultation with Environmental Health and Safety (EHS). Four labs, represented by the following individuals, participated in the pilot program - Kathleen May and Rachele Carafa in Kerr Hall North 202, Dr. Bryan Koivisto in Kerr Hall North 211, Vanessa Ruscette in Kerr Hall North 322 and Ella Hyatt and Julia Pellegrino in the Faculty of Science research facility in MaRS Discovery District.
The Green Labs Program presents an opportunity for lab users to lead by example and implement sustainable programs and practices to reduce the environmental footprint of their labs. Participants learned about best practices, exchange ideas, participate in events and competitions, and access resources to succeed.
Sustainable Careers Connection event
The Sustainability Office and the Career and Co-op Centre partnered to host a virtual sustainability event on October 20, 2021 to provide participants with a greater understanding of how they can contribute to the Sustainable Development Goals (external link) through different career paths.
The event was open to all TMU students and broader alumni community who were interested in working at or with organizations that are committed to sustainability and/or the SDGs.
Students were invited to participate in a panel discussion and networking event with representatives from several sustainability professions working to advance the SDGs. Students heard from panelists about their career path and current work and were given advice on working in the sustainability field.
54 students
attended an event
to learn how different career paths can contribute to Sustainable Development Goals
UN Sustainable Development Goals related to these initiatives:
