Sustainability

“Vision 2020 is about conversations.” | Sean Reginio

Sean Reginio and Josée Méthot probably won’t be at McGill in the year 2020, but that isn’t stopping them from spending long hours thinking about how the University will look and feel in that hazy future far beyond their own graduations. Sustainability, after all, doesn’t have an expiry date.

Vision 2020: Creating a Sustainable McGill is a project driven by the grassroots energy of students like Reginio and Méthot, as well as faculty and staff. Centrally supported by McGill’s Office of Sustainability, Vision 2020’s purpose is to set a long-term sustainability strategy for–and from–the entire community, integrating social, economic and environmental elements of sustainability through the lens of McGill’s mission and strengths.

“Vision 2020 is really about conversations,” says Reginio, a U2 Economics & Finance student and a Vision 2020 intern. “It’s an opportunity for the entire McGill community to work together and plan out our future. How often do you actually get to play a role in making lasting positive change in a community this huge?”

The conversation has been happening all over McGill’s campuses–including facilitated visioning sessions, flash consultations and an online ideas slam. Hundreds of people from across the McGill community have participated, sharing ideas ranging from rooftop gardens to interdisciplinary student research hubs to more efficient storage options for biomedical samples.

“We’re seeing some really great ideas,” says Josée Méthot, a data strategist for Vision 2020 who just completed her Master’s in Natural Resource Sciences. She was drawn to the project’s pragmatism, foresight and optimism. “Themes are definitely emerging from the consultations: physical spaces that connect people, stronger ties with the local and global community, more opportunities for experiential learning.”

“People leave our events really energized,” Reginio says. “They’re excited about being able to connect with people from across the community–students, administrators, professors–sharing ideas and finding common ground.”

In addition to the Vision 2020 initiative, the McGill community has been busy with on-the-ground sustainability efforts, including:

The Sustainability Projects Fund, established in 2009, continues to build a culture of sustainability on McGill’s campuses. With over $800,000 to distribute annually–administration matches student fees dollar-for-dollar–the Fund empowers anyone with a good idea. Over 80 projects have been funded to date, approximately half led by students and half by staff.

The new networked fleet of uPrint printer/copiers is reducing the number of devices on campus, saving paper (through default double-sided printing) and energy (by reducing the number of devices on campus). The project, a joint effort between Ancillary Services and IT services, received a 2012 Canadian Association of University Business Officers (CAUBO) Quality and Productivity award.

An online Energy Dashboard now enables students and staff to track their real-time electricity and steam use in more than 70 buildings on both McGill campuses. The system also helps rival student residences keep score in their annual Fight the Power competition.

318,000 litres of rainwater were captured and used for irrigation