University of Alberta- Building a Sustainable Future
Description
The campus sustainability initiative is guided by the university's sustainability plan (i.e., Building a Sustainable Future). The plan is divided into 10 five key focus areas: leadership, education & research, operations & infrastructure, community & culture and health & wellbeing. The plan has 23 goals and 98 strategies for making progress on campus sustainability. The Office of Sustainability coordinates the collection and promotion of sustainability initiatives, offers facilitation and support to assist with implementation of sustainability initiatives, and coordinates reporting on progress of the Sustainability Plan. Working in collaboration with the Office of Sustainability, the following leaders facilitate the implementation and coordination of sustainability strategies in this plan:
- Chief Sustainability Officer, Office of Sustainability
- Manager, Energy Management & Sustainable Operations, Facilities & Operations
- Director for Sustainability Scholarship and Education, Office of the Provost
These leaders work with with unit leads, organizations and established working groups, identify potential collaborators on strategies and provide logistical support for action planning and reporting. Together they identify potential collaborators for each strategy/goal and capture this information in an internal implementation framework. The implementation framework will help build connections between potential collaborators, identify the need for resources or funding, establish performance indicators, and collect the information needed to inform a progress report on this plan. The progress report will be shared with high-level committees and executive champions.
The Office of Sustainability offers a range of programs supporting capacity-building and technology transfer including: <br />
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- Leading Sustainability At Work. Participants join a 3-day class and work collaboratively with their peers to gain skills, share insights and develop a plan for their area. <br />
- Student Sustainability Summit. Participants are exposed to a range of sustainability topics and skill-building activities. <br />
- Green Labs Leaders Network. This program is a community of practice associated with energy efficiency, water conservation and waste reduction.<br />
- Green Spaces Certification. Participants implement a range of sustainable practices in events, offices, labs, residences and food vending spaces.<br />
- Student experience programs. Students are offered opportunities to develop their skills through internships, research placements and paid positions. <br />
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SDGS & Targets
Goal 4
Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all
4.1
By 2030, ensure that all girls and boys complete free, equitable and quality primary and secondary education leading to relevant and effective learning outcomes
4.1.1
Proportion of children and young people (a) in grades 2/3; (b) at the end of primary; and (c) at the end of lower secondary achieving at least a minimum proficiency level in (i) reading and (ii) mathematics, by sex
4.1.2
Completion rate (primary education, lower secondary education, upper secondary education)
4.2
By 2030, ensure that all girls and boys have access to quality early childhood development, care and pre-primary education so that they are ready for primary education
4.2.1
Proportion of children aged 24–59 months who are developmentally on track in health, learning and psychosocial well-being, by sex
4.2.2
Participation rate in organized learning (one year before the official primary entry age), by sex
4.3
By 2030, ensure equal access for all women and men to affordable and quality technical, vocational and tertiary education, including university
4.3.1
Participation rate of youth and adults in formal and non-formal education and training in the previous 12 months, by sex
4.4
By 2030, substantially increase the number of youth and adults who have relevant skills, including technical and vocational skills, for employment, decent jobs and entrepreneurship
4.4.1
Proportion of youth and adults with information and communications technology (ICT) skills, by type of skill
4.5
4.5.1
Parity indices (female/male, rural/urban, bottom/top wealth quintile and others such as disability status, indigenous peoples and conflict-affected, as data become available) for all education indicators on this list that can be disaggregated
4.6
By 2030, ensure that all youth and a substantial proportion of adults, both men and women, achieve literacy and numeracy
4.6.1
Proportion of population in a given age group achieving at least a fixed level of proficiency in functional (a) literacy and (b) numeracy skills, by sex
4.7
By 2030, ensure that all learners acquire the knowledge and skills needed to promote sustainable development, including, among others, through education for sustainable development and sustainable lifestyles, human rights, gender equality, promotion of a culture of peace and non-violence, global citizenship and appreciation of cultural diversity and of culture’s contribution to sustainable development
4.7.1
Extent to which (i) global citizenship education and (ii) education for sustainable development are mainstreamed in (a) national education policies; (b) curricula; (c) teacher education and (d) student assessment
4.a
Build and upgrade education facilities that are child, disability and gender sensitive and provide safe, non-violent, inclusive and effective learning environments for all
4.a.1
Proportion of schools offering basic services, by type of service
4.b
4.b.1
Volume of official development assistance flows for scholarships by sector and type of study
4.c
By 2030, substantially increase the supply of qualified teachers, including through international cooperation for teacher training in developing countries, especially least developed countries and small island developing States
4.c.1
Proportion of teachers with the minimum required qualifications, by education level
Goal 12
Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns
12.1
Implement the 10-Year Framework of Programmes on Sustainable Consumption and Production Patterns, all countries taking action, with developed countries taking the lead, taking into account the development and capabilities of developing countries
12.1.1
Number of countries developing, adopting or implementing policy instruments aimed at supporting the shift to sustainable consumption and production
12.2
By 2030, achieve the sustainable management and efficient use of natural resources
12.2.1
Material footprint, material footprint per capita, and material footprint per GDP
12.2.2
Domestic material consumption, domestic material consumption per capita, and domestic material consumption per GDP
12.3
By 2030, halve per capita global food waste at the retail and consumer levels and reduce food losses along production and supply chains, including post-harvest losses
12.3.1
(a) Food loss index and (b) food waste index
12.4
By 2020, achieve the environmentally sound management of chemicals and all wastes throughout their life cycle, in accordance with agreed international frameworks, and significantly reduce their release to air, water and soil in order to minimize their adverse impacts on human health and the environment
12.4.1
12.4.2
(a) Hazardous waste generated per capita; and (b) proportion of hazardous waste treated, by type of treatment
12.5
By 2030, substantially reduce waste generation through prevention, reduction, recycling and reuse
12.5.1
National recycling rate, tons of material recycled
12.6
Encourage companies, especially large and transnational companies, to adopt sustainable practices and to integrate sustainability information into their reporting cycle
12.6.1
12.7
Promote public procurement practices that are sustainable, in accordance with national policies and priorities
12.7.1
Number of countries implementing sustainable public procurement policies and action plans
12.8
By 2030, ensure that people everywhere have the relevant information and awareness for sustainable development and lifestyles in harmony with nature
12.8.1
Extent to which (i) global citizenship education and (ii) education for sustainable development are mainstreamed in (a) national education policies; (b) curricula; (c) teacher education; and (d) student assessment
12.a
Support developing countries to strengthen their scientific and technological capacity to move towards more sustainable patterns of consumption and production
12.a.1
Installed renewable energy-generating capacity in developing and developed countries (in watts per capita)
12.b
Develop and implement tools to monitor sustainable development impacts for sustainable tourism that creates jobs and promotes local culture and products
12.b.1
Implementation of standard accounting tools to monitor the economic and environmental aspects of tourism sustainability
12.c
Rationalize inefficient fossil-fuel subsidies that encourage wasteful consumption by removing market distortions, in accordance with national circumstances, including by restructuring taxation and phasing out those harmful subsidies, where they exist, to reflect their environmental impacts, taking fully into account the specific needs and conditions of developing countries and minimizing the possible adverse impacts on their development in a manner that protects the poor and the affected communities
12.c.1
Amount of fossil-fuel subsidies (production and consumption) per unit of GDP
Goal 13
Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts
13.1
Strengthen resilience and adaptive capacity to climate-related hazards and natural disasters in all countries
13.1.1
Number of deaths, missing persons and directly affected persons attributed to disasters per 100,000 population
13.1.2
Number of countries that adopt and implement national disaster risk reduction strategies in line with the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015–2030
13.1.3
Proportion of local governments that adopt and implement local disaster risk reduction strategies in line with national disaster risk reduction strategies
13.2
Integrate climate change measures into national policies, strategies and planning
13.2.1
Number of countries with nationally determined contributions, long-term strategies, national adaptation plans and adaptation communications, as reported to the secretariat of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
13.2.2
Total greenhouse gas emissions per year
13.3
Improve education, awareness-raising and human and institutional capacity on climate change mitigation, adaptation, impact reduction and early warning
13.3.1
Extent to which (i) global citizenship education and (ii) education for sustainable development are mainstreamed in (a) national education policies; (b) curricula; (c) teacher education; and (d) student assessment
13.a
Implement the commitment undertaken by developed-country parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change to a goal of mobilizing jointly $100 billion annually by 2020 from all sources to address the needs of developing countries in the context of meaningful mitigation actions and transparency on implementation and fully operationalize the Green Climate Fund through its capitalization as soon as possible
13.a.1
Amounts provided and mobilized in United States dollars per year in relation to the continued existing collective mobilization goal of the $100 billion commitment through to 2025
13.b
Promote mechanisms for raising capacity for effective climate change-related planning and management in least developed countries and small island developing States, including focusing on women, youth and local and marginalized communities
13.b.1
Number of least developed countries and small island developing States with nationally determined contributions, long-term strategies, national adaptation plans and adaptation communications, as reported to the secretariat of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
SDG 14 targets covered
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Deliverables & Timeline
Resources mobilized
Partnership Progress
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Contact Information
Trina Innes, Chief Sustainability Officer