U of G Earns Gold Rating for Sustainability

Our sustainability story began over 150 years ago with our founding colleges as they advanced knowledge, promoted education, and fostered connections with communities. Now, as one of the country’s top comprehensive and research-intensive universities, we continue to prioritize sustainability in our teaching, our research, on our campus and in our community. 

Over the past year, we have been actively collecting data and stories to help us measure our progress on advancing sustainability and action on climate change against the Sustainability Tracking, Assessment & Rating System (STARS), administered by the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE). STARS is an internationally recognized, voluntary, self-reporting framework for colleges and universities to measure, track and report their sustainability performance.  

Our progress has earned the University of Guelph a gold STARS rating. U of G’s rating places it among Ontario’s top-four most sustainable universities. Out of the 91 Canadian institutions that participate in STARS, 16, including U of G, have achieved a gold rating.  

U of G’s STARS rating was based on the sustainability performance of the main campus in the following categories: academics, engagement, operations, planning and administration, innovation, and leadership.

We welcome you to explore U of G’s STARS report to discover what we’ve discovered; that sustainability is truly a part of our shared story at the University of Guelph.   

https://vimeo.com/430420941

By the Numbers

Faculty members conducting research related to sustainability
Solar PV panels installed on campus
ft² of LEED Certified Building Space

From Research To Reality

The ability to think across disciplines to generate new knowledge is an invaluable resource to address the needs of the present, without compromising the futures ability to meet their own needs. The University of Guelph is a living lab, where academics and operations come together to improve life.

Where Next?

U of G has identified strengthening a campus-wide culture of sustainability as a key priority of the University. While sustainability has long been an underpinning value of the University, there are opportunities to expand on previous efforts, enhance the profile of sustainability and connect it throughout the University in all of its programs, activities and operations.

How do we know we’re making meaningful strides when it comes to sustainability actions on campus? The Sustainability Tracking, Assessment & Rating System (STARS) is a transparent, comprehensive, self-reporting framework for colleges and universities to measure their sustainability performance. Benchmarking against the STARS sustainability framework will allow the University of Guelph to see what we’ve achieved, how we can make continual improvements, and plan our next steps towards advancing sustainability and action on climate change.

The President Advisory Committee on Sustainability

The President’s Advisory Committee on Sustainability (PACS) serves as a key resource to the president and the campus community. PACS will advise and collaborate with the president on the creation a Sustainability Framework that includes goals, targets, priorities and metrics to advance campus sustainability and action on climate change.

We welcome you to be part of shaping our shared future on sustainability.

 

Learn more about the President’s Advisory Committee on Sustainability

Stay tuned for updates

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