FINAL REPORT OF THE
SUSTAINABILITY
COMMISSONER
WILL
WARNICA UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO STUDENTS’ UNION
LOCAL 98 CANADIAN FEDERATION OF STUDENTS
UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO STUDENTS’ UNION LOCAL 98 CANADIAN FEDERATION OF STUDENTS
REPORT OF THE SUSTAINABILITY COMMISSIONER IN THIS REPORT: 1. ECOFEST 2. VEGAN BBQ 3. PUBLIC WATER INITIATIVES 4. FOOD SECURITY 5. POWERSHIFT 6. LIAISON & COLLABORATION 7. FINAL NOTES The 2012-2013 year has been a successful one for the Sustainability Commission. It is important for the student union to have a strong sustainability focus, especially as sustainability issues intertwine closely with social justice and student issues. The Commission has covered a broad spectrum of sustainability events and advocacy over the past year, from broader political issues on the national scale to internal university issues. Collaboration with many sustainability groups on campus helped to make this possible.
1. ECOFEST
The UTSU teamed up with several campus groups to put on the first-ever EcoFest. The events lasted more than one week with numerous events targeting numerous topics. Thank you to Will Warnica, Sustainability Commissioner, and the Sustainability Commission for coordinating the entire week. Thank you to all the participating groups including, but not limited to, the University of Toronto Graduate Students’ Union, BikeChain, Sustainable Engineers Association, VUSAC Sustainability Commission, UofT Environmental Action, Enactus, Hot Yam!, Dig In! Campus Agriculture, the UofT Sustainability Office, Students for Meatless Mondays and the UTSC Sustainability Office. UTSC WELLNESS FAIR | Thursday, January 24, 2013 BIKECHAIN WINTER RIDING SEMINAR | Thursday, January 24, 2013 MEATLESS MONDAY MOVIE SCREENING: A RIVER OF WASTE - the hazardous truth about factory farms | Thursday, January 24, 2013 ECOFEST POTLUCK & MIX ‘N MINGLE | Friday, January 25, 2013 MEATLESS MONDAY LUNCH & LEARN: GREEN SCAVENGER HUNT | Monday, January 28, 2013 FOOD JUSTICE FILM FESTIVAL | Tuesday, January 29, 2013 HOT YAM! VEGAN LUNCH ECOFEST SPEAKER PANEL | Tuesday, January 30, 2013 With distiguished speakers: Charles Levkoe, Prof. Deborah McGregor, Simon Appolloni, Prof. Tat Smith and Dr. Franz Hartmann, Executive Director of the Toronto Environmental Alliance MEATLESS MONDAY TALK: ANIMALS, ENVIRONMENT AND CLIMATE CHANGE | Thursday, January 31, 2013 RALLY FOR CLIMATE JUSTICE ENVIRONMENTAL FASHION SHOW & AUCTION | Friday, February 1, 2013 SUSTAINABLE ENGINEERS ASSOCIATION CONFERENCE (SEAC) 2013 | Saturday, February 2, 2013
2.
VEGAN BBQ
On Monday, October 15, the Sustainability Commission organized a Vegan BBQ in collaboration with the Hot Yam! This was a highly successful event, with over 100 people attending. We served corn-on-the-cob, coleslaw, and marinated veggie and tofu skewers. The mere $3 we charged per plate also recovered almost all of the cost of the event. The strong volunteer power we had helped to keep us going in spite of the chilly weather.
FINAL REPORT OF THE SUSTAINABILITY COMMISSIONER
UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO STUDENTS’ UNION LOCAL 98 CANADIAN FEDERATION OF STUDENTS
3.
PUBLIC WATER INITIATIVES
RESIDENCE CHALLENGE One of the Commission’s goals this year was to hold a residence challenge, pitting residences against each other to reduce their energy and/or water consumption. As it turned out, another group on campus, Enactus (formerly known as SIFE), had been organizing a water conservation residence challenge in previous years. Instead of duplicating their efforts, the Commission joined with them to make their challenge more successful. This included helping them design a don resource booklet and hosting a Halloween pledge event in Sidney Smith. BOTTLED WATER-FREE CAMPUS The Sustainability Commission and Public Water Initiative managed to lobby the University of Toronto to ban the sale of bottled water on the St. George campus and phase out the sale on the Mississauga and Scarborough campuses. The initiative is part of a larger campaign by the Canadian Federation of Students to bring knowledge to the public about the environmental hazards of bottled water and the ethical issues of the prization of bottled-water. This year the Canadian Federation of Students launched a video campaign on Bottled-water Free Day. The video featured: Robyn Hamlyn, youth water activist with the Council of Canadians; Munib Sajjad, VicePresident University Affairs; Mike Nagy, community activist with the Wellington Water Watchers; and, Sylvia Plain, Aamjiwnaang First Nation activist with the Mother Earth Water Walk and UofT student. This project was brought together by the Coalition for Bottled Water-Free Communities, which includes the Canadian Federation of Students, the Polaris Institute, the Sierra Youth Coalition, the Canadian Union of Public Employees, and the Council of Canadians. The Commission continues to work with the On-Tap Committee to expanded and repair water fountain facilities around campus. OFFICE RAIN BARRELS Early in the year, the Sustainibility Commission put in a request to install rain barrels around the office at 12 Hart House Circle. Three barrels were installed in August. The barrels will effectively conserve water and energy in the maintenance of the community garden.
4.
FOOD SECURITY
COMMUNITY EQUITY GARDEN This year, the Sustainability Commission connected with Dig In! Campus Agriculture to make plans to collaborate on the UTSU Equity Garden during the spring and summer of 2013. We are looking forward to sprucing up the garden with an interesting collection of plants, including a section of herbs and maybe some raspberries and decorative edibles such as rainbow chard. I managed to get three rain barrels installed outside the UTSU building, and these will help reduce our water consumption as we water the garden this year. UeaT ADVISORY COMMITTEE The Academic & Student Rights Commission had a large focus on food security through campus food providers. The Sustainability Commission has partnered with the Academic & Student Rights Commission to attend the Food Advisory Committee meetings hosted by the university with students, staff and faculty. The committee has been a productive place to discuss the Union’s campaign and surveys for better food options. The Union has also been able to participate in developing the university’s branding strategy around standardized descriptions for vegan and vegetarian fod labelling. The Union has also recommended branding for gluten-free, kosher and halal options. The committee has also shown significant interest in assisting the growth of the Good Food Box program.
5. POWERSHIFT From October 26 to 29, a number of representatives from the UTSU attended PowerShift, a conference in Ottawa organized by youth for youth interested in social change and building a movement for social, environmental, and climate justice. The conference featured a lineup of interactive and informative workshops, and many empowering speakers including Winona LaDuke, Naomi Klein, and Bill McKibben. The conference aimed to educate and mobilize youth to take collective action, and included discussions on important topics like environmental racism and the role of frontline and indigenous communities. A full report can be found in the November Board of Directors Report. In attendance were Noor Baig, Vice-President Equity, Shaun Shepherd, President, and directors Ali Mustafa-Bello, Faria Farah, Laurel Chester, Kevin Lunianga, and Laurel Chester.
FINAL REPORT OF THE VICE-PRESIDENT CAMPUS LIFE
UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO STUDENTS’ UNION LOCAL 98 CANADIAN FEDERATION OF STUDENTS
6.
LIAISON & COLLABORATION
The Sustainabilty Commission made an attempt throughout the year to improve the connections with other sustainability groups on campus. The Commission has regularly participated in the university’s Sustainability Advisory Committee, the new UofT Environmental Action group and the Bikechain Board of Directors. The Commission has also regularly participated in the On-Tap Committee to discuss public water initiatives on campus. The Commission has regularly advertised environmental sustainbility initiatives through the listserv and Facebook Page.
7.
FINAL NOTES
It was a pleasure being the Sustainability Commissioner this year. I want to thank everyone who came out to our meetings and events, as you helped make this year a success. I look forward to helping out the incoming Sustainability Commissioner to get the ball rolling to achieve more successes in the year to come.
In solidarity, Will Warnica Sustainability Commissioner University of Toronto Students’ Union Local 98 Canadian Federation of Students
FINAL REPORT OF THE SUSTAINABILITY COMMISSIONER