Sustainability

1. Mission

Loyalist College strives to be an institutional model of sustainability, inspiring and educating students, staff, and our communities to make a positive difference today and in the future. To minimize the College’s impact on the environment, Loyalist promotes prudent and creative management of its social, economic and environmental resources.

2. Commitment

In September 2009, Loyalist became a signatory to the Association of Canadian Community Colleges (ACCC) Pan-Canadian Protocol for Sustainability. This formalized a commitment which College staff and students had supported for some time.

Sustainability has been identified as one of three strategic directions in the College’s 2009-2014 Strategic Plan, which supports our actions and directions, allocation of resources, and individual program and department operational plans

3. Application

This policy applies to the entire College community.

4. Policy Statement

Loyalist College developed this Sustainability Policy as a guideline for achieving the highest possible standards of sustainability on campus throughout all areas of operation, while also increasing sustainable stewardship among students, staff, alumni, partners, and our communities. The policy defines the College’s core principles for practicing and promoting sustainability through social, ethical, technological and scientific education.

To this end, Loyalist College will follow these three principles of sustainability:

• 4.1 Economic
  • Loyalist will:
    • Consider environmental responsibilities in the activities and operation of the College in a way that balances its financial health with the high quality learning and service needs of students and staff today and tomorrow, while advancing sustainable growth; and
    • Establish mutually beneficial partnerships and implement joint strategies with government, business and communities to work collaboratively toward sustainability and supporting green and economic growth
• 4.2 Environmental
  • Loyalist will:
    • Identify opportunities, and where possible implement programs, to enhance sustainability of all College operations and facilities such as green standards for buildings, alternate energy sources, conservation and reduction, Energy Star certification for products, and energy-efficient and alternative transportation;
    • Promote the principles of sustainability within curriculum to enable students and communities to contribute to a sustainable future;
    • Assess and implement quality assurance processes that support sustainability improvements in programs, services and business practices; and
    • Establish sustainability indicators to enable accountability, to communicate specific goals, and to measure and report on progress.
• 4.3 Socio-Cultural
  • Loyalist will:
    • Integrate sustainability principles in cultural, sports, recreational and other activities;
    • Participate in sustainability networks and associations, sharing best practices, research, and models;
    • Incorporate exemplary practices of sustainability in corporate documents and reports such as mission statements, strategic plans, annual reports, and policies;
    • Prepare and regularly update a sustainability plan with specific goals and objectives; and,
    • Raise awareness and communicate Loyalist’s sustainability results annually to internal and external stakeholders, in order to facilitate information exchange and encourage the interest and evolution of a culture of mindfulness in staff and students.

These three pillars of sustainability are Loyalist’s integral focus on advancing College’s ‘Sustainability and Capacity Building’ strategic direction.