| Overall Rating | Silver |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 50.13 |
| Liaison | Ronnie Dorsnie |
| Submission Date | April 25, 2023 |
John Abbott College
EN-5: Outreach Campaign
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
4.00 / 4.00 |
Shannon
Coulter-Low Student Life Counsellor Student Services |
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:
During the month of April, the Sustainability Committee engages students and staff to participate in the Earth Month Eco-Challenge. April 2022 was the third year that the school participated. Offered by Ecochallenge.org, this challenge proposes actions that are categorized into daily or one-time actions, for which participants earn points and compete against other teams.
In April 2022, the JAC team competed against 733 teams from around the world. We were number 1 in Canada and among all school teams. 109 students staff joined in the challenge. The campaign is promoted through the Sustainability Committee members, working groups, and student clubs, who advertised and organized activities which were completed individually and through classes, clubs, departments and other group activities. The library also featured books related to the actions in the Challenge.
Prizes were awarded to the student and staff individuals who earned the most points and the top earning student and staff teams. Educating students about leading a ecologically and socially conscious lifestyle is a primary feature of the Eco-Challenge.
A brief description of the measured positive impact(s) of the campaign:
Measured positive impacts:
- Up to 666 meatless or vegan meals.
- Up to 177 zero-waste meals consumed.
- Up to 7,124 gallons of water saved.
- Up to 1,106 conversations with people about eco/socially conscious habits.
- Up to 235 hours spent outside.
- Up to 134 hours spent learning.
See the rest of the numbers here: https://earthmonth.ecochallenge.org/teams/jac-sustainability
Information is also available on our website: https://www.johnabbott.qc.ca/sustainability-at-jac/student-life-sustainability/
Name of the campaign (2nd campaign):
A brief description of the campaign (2nd campaign):
Between March to April 2021, a campaign was launched by the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) Working Group at John Abbott to promote the SDGs to the College community. Posts were created and added to the school’s internal portal every two days, with links to information and relevant library resources. The students in the Working Group created an Instagram page to promote the 17 Sustainable Development Goals and to compliment the portal posts. During this period, advertising was also done through various communications mediums, such as to the John Abbott Student Union, student clubs, and student newspaper. Every two weeks, the library posted a virtual shelf on their website, focusing on books and films related to one of the SDGs. Student representatives from the working group then created a promotional 3-minute video about the SDGs for Colleges and Institutes Canada’s (CICan) SDG Thought Forum, summarizing all the work that was done during the semester to raise awareness and where the working group plans on heading in the future. The video was featured on College and Institutes Canada's SDG Toolkit: https://sdgcicanguide.pressbooks.com/chapter/student-and-community/
Information is also available on our website: https://www.johnabbott.qc.ca/sustainability-at-jac/student-life-sustainability/
A brief description of the measured positive impact(s) of the campaign (2nd campaign):
A survey was formulated and handed out to student club leaders at the College at the end of the campaign, to see if and how the SDGs affected their portion of the student body.
A brief description of other sustainability-related outreach campaigns:
In April 2022, the Sustainability Committee launched a campaign to encourage students to speak out about overcrowding on the popular 419 bus line that brings students to campus. The Committee had heard many complaints but none of them were being heard by the STM (Montreal's regional transportation authority). A student-designed poster was printed on sandwich boards at the bus station, displaying the message "Improve bus 419!" Students were given a direct URL to the STM's complaints form on their website and encouraged to make a complaint. Students and staff also stood outside and gave out handouts, reaching approximately 75 people.
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.