| Overall Rating | Gold - expired |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 69.69 |
| Liaison | Rochelle Owen |
| Submission Date | April 6, 2018 |
| Executive Letter | Download |
Dalhousie University
EN-5: Outreach Campaign
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
4.00 / 4.00 |
Has the institution held at least one 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 at least one 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, including how students and/or employees were engaged:
The annual Ecolympics competition is hosted by Dalhousie University’s Green Residence Forum (GRF) to help reduce energy and water consumption in residences through competition and education. The energy challenge is aligned with the Atlantic University Annual Energy Challenge. Before the competition begins, energy and water consumption baselines are determined for all participating residences.
Overall goals of Dalhousie University’s Ecolympics:
- Have an engaging and competitive residence wide energy and water consumption competition
- Heighten awareness of sustainability initiatives at Dalhousie
- Have the competition influence the adoption of more sustainable lifestyle choices
- Reduce Dalhousie’s carbon footprint
-Support community building in residence
A brief description of the measured positive impact(s) of the campaign:
Before the competition begins, energy and water consumption baselines are determined for all participating residences. During the two-week competition each residence is challenged to decrease their energy and water consumption and take other sustainable actions, this is measured in real time and in shown on an online dashboard. Throughout the two weeks of the Ecolympics, sustainability will be promoted around the campus in order to educate and inform participants and campus members. On the Halifax campuses, winning residence will be determined by how much actual water and energy is reduced which is verified through metering. The AC campus competes in the electricity catagory, as water metering is being worked on. Involvement and participation are also factors in determining a winner, attending events and making commitments helps win each residence points. The winning residence for HFX and AC campuses gets to take home the residence trophy and other fun features such as a free movie night.
The website URL where information about the campaign is available:
Name of the campaign (2nd campaign):
A brief description of the campaign, including how students and/or employees were engaged (2nd campaign):
The Brightest Idea Competition is run during the month of March each year. All Dalhousie Employees (Faculty and Staff) and Students are invited to submit their ideas on practical approaches to save energy and water that have not been implemented or planned on campus. The idea is to get people on campus to think about sustainability and to make observations about what is and is not happening
A brief description of the measured positive impact(s) of the campaign (2nd campaign):
The ideas submitted by the public are often ideas that the Office of Sustainability has researched or are already pursuing. Including the campus in generating sustainability ideas is a way to generate public support for sustainability initiatives. Idea submissions received each year are seen as a positive impact, it demonstrates that people genuinely care about the campus enough to submit ideas as to how we can be more sustainable in terms of energy and water use. Some previous ideas include capturing waste heat from steam tunnels (a project that is currently being researched in Facilities Management) and generating electricity from gym equipment (an idea being researched for the new athletic facility).
The website URL where information about the campaign is available (2nd campaign):
A brief description of other sustainability-related outreach campaigns, including measured positive impacts:
Commuter challenge : The Commuter Challenge is a week-long event during Canadian Environment Week in which cities and workplaces compete to encourage Canadians to leave their cars at home and reward those who are walking, cycling, carpooling and taking transit. Dalhousie has participated in the Commuter Challenge since 2011. During the challenge week, participants track the distances they traveled and their mode of transportation. At the end of the week, participants receive a summary that illustrates total impact for the transportation used (calories burned, fuel saved, and CO2 emissions avoided).
The website URL where information about the programs or initiatives is available:
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.