| Overall Rating | Silver |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 60.39 |
| Liaison | Christina Olsen |
| Submission Date | March 30, 2021 |
British Columbia Institute of Technology
EN-5: Outreach Campaign
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
4.00 / 4.00 |
Has the institution held a sustainability-related outreach campaign during the previous three years that was directed at students and yielded measurable, positive results in advancing sustainability?:
Has the institution held a sustainability-related outreach campaign during the previous three years that was directed at employees and yielded measurable, positive results in advancing sustainability?:
Name of the campaign:
A brief description of the campaign:
The BCIT Green Team regularly runs sustainability-related outreach campaigns aimed at students and employees. BCIT joined other post-secondary institutions in British Columbia (BC) for the BC Cool Campus Challenge aimed at promoting energy conservation across the province in 2019. This was the first cross-institution, energy saving collaboration of its kind in British Columbia. Students and employees were challenged to take energy conservation actions by signing the Cool Campus Pledge:
"I pledge to reduce my energy use in my home and/or workplace this winter season by (choose as many as you’ll do):
• Turning down the heat (between 1°C and 3°C)
• Layering up in warm clothing
• Taking shorter showers
• Doing laundry in cold water
• Commit to climate change action and/or awareness by: _____________________ (fill in your own action here)”
https://commons.bcit.ca/news/2019/01/bcit-cool-campus-challenge/
https://hub.aashe.org/browse/casestudy/21762/British-Columbia-BC-Cool-Campus-Challenge
A brief description of the measured positive impact(s) of the campaign:
To raise awareness of the Cool Campus Pledge, the Green Team held outreach events at all five campuses and handed out approximately 375 packages of dry hot chocolate/tea/cider/soup with reminder/pledge stickers. 455 members of the BCIT community made the pledge to reduce their energy use at home and on campus.
Name of the campaign (2nd campaign):
A brief description of the campaign (2nd campaign):
In 2020, due to COVID-19, the majority of programs and courses at BCIT were offered fully remotely, while those that required on-campus learning were offered in a blended delivery mode. The Green Team launched a campaign to educate employees only on energy conservation and sustainability actions. There were two parts to this campaign:
1. The Energy Treasure Hunt targeted approximately 200 BCIT employees working on campus. Posters of energy conservation opportunities to watch for and how to report them were put up in BCIT buildings.
2. The Winter Power Down targeted approximately 2500 employees working on campus and from home. Game cards had a variety of electricity/natural gas/water/waste/wellness actions to take.
A brief description of the measured positive impact(s) of the campaign (2nd campaign):
The Energy Treasure Hunt uncovered many opportunities to reduce energy use. Facilities teams then acted on the reports. For example, energy was saved by unplugging fridges and vending machines that were no longer in use due to the majority of employees working remotely.
Positive impacts of the Winter Power Down include:
• 560 views of Winter Power Down campaign internal webpage
• 100% of participants did electricity reduction activities
• 100% of participants did natural gas reduction activities
• 60% of participants did water reduction activities
• 90% of participants did waste reduction activities
• 95% of participants did wellness activities
A brief description of other sustainability-related outreach campaigns:
Other campaigns in the last three years include but are not limited to:
• Sweater Season 2020. The goal was to educate the community on personal greenhouse gas reduction actions. Outreach events were held at all five campuses with approximately 100 written pledges to take action (turn down the heat & put on a sweater, take shorter showers, do laundry in cold water).
• Reusable Mug 2019. The Green Team partnered with the BCIT Student Association to encourage the switch to re-usable mugs. Together, they kicked off the school year with a contest, in which each person who purchased a reusable mug, was also entered in a prize draw. It was estimated that the average student would save $35 over a single term through discounted beverages by using a reusable mug.
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.