10 Sustainability Plan: Executive Summary
SUSTAINABILITY PLAN Offce of Sustainability The Offce of Sustainability was launched in 2015. It focuses on integrating the interconnected sectors of sustainability - Academics, Engagement, Operations, and Planning and Administrationistration - into the university. As shown in the governance framework diagram, the Offce of Sustainability is the administrative body that works to connect and support the Lakehead University Sustainability Stewardship Council and the Sustainability Executive Advisory Committee. The Offce of Sustainability is led by the University Sustainability Coordinator.
Sustainability Coordinator The Sustainability Coordinator nurtures a culture of sustainability at the university in all of its functions and operations. The Coordinator works collaboratively with all types of employees at the university including senior administration, faculty, staff, and students to plan, develop, and facilitate existing and new sustainability efforts.
Lakehead University Sustainability Stewardship Council (LUSSC) LUSSC provides a forum for students, faculty, administration, LUSU, and the community to create Lakehead University’s unique sustainability profle by examining key sustainability issues and developing and implementing a Sustainability Plan for both the Thunder Bay and Orillia campuses.
Sustainability Executive Advisory Committee (SEAC) SEAC provides institutional support for the Offce of Sustainability, the Sustainability Stewardship Council, and Working Groups and is composed of the Provost, the Vice-President of Finance and Administration, the Vice-President of External Relations, the Vice-President of Research and Innovation, the Principal (Orillia Campus), and LUSU, along with other members appointed by the Provost.
Methodology for the Sustainability Plan The LUSSC spent its frst operating year developing a Sustainability Plan for the University. This plan was deeply infuenced by the Sustainability, Tracking, Assessment, and Rating System (STARS), developed by the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE). STARS is an international, peer-reviewed, voluntary, and public self-reporting framework. In 2014, under the direction of the Centre for Place and Sustainability Studies, the STARS sustainability assessment was completed for both campuses. The recommendations that came out of this assessment provided the backbone for the plan.
Four Working Groups of the LUSSC were struck, refecting the main categories of the STARS assessment: Academics, Operations, Engagement, and Planning and Administration. Working Groups developed and implemented relevant portions of the plan that were then brought back to the entire LUSSC and the SEAC for further discussion and refnement, ensuring the process was participatory and democratic. To open our minds to other ways of knowing sustainability, talking circles were convened between members of the Ogimaawin-Aboriginal Governance Council, Indigenous students, members of the University’s Elders Council, and fnally, with Indigenous staff and faculty designated by the Offce of Aboriginal Initiatives. The Plan covers a variety of recommendations in the following categories: Curriculum, Research, Grounds, Dining Services, Energy, Waste, Water, Campus Engagement, Public Engagement, Coordination, Two-Eyed Seeing, and Investment. While there is currently no active Working Group for Planning and Administrationistration, this is an area that will also need attention; some issues pertaining to Planning and Administrationistration are currently being addressed by the Sustainability Executive Advisory Committee. To ensure accountability and measure progress, Working Groups will conduct an informal assessment annually to review progress and highlight areas of priority. Working groups are charged with identifying key players for each strategy. We will continue to seek the counsel of Indigenous Elders, faculty, and staff during the implementation of this Plan.
To prevent reinventing the wheel, some wording in this document has been borrowed from the STARS 2.1 Manual, a good compass for best practices in sustainability in higher education. See the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education’s (AASHE) Sustainability, Tracking, Assessment, and Rating System (STARS) for more information: www.stars.aashe.org
