UFV celebrates a milestone in sustainability leadership
This fall, the University of the Fraser Valley community marked an important milestone in its sustainability journey: UFV’s Office of Sustainability turned five years old. A celebration was held on September 17 to acknowledge what the university has accomplished, the work still to come, and the people across the university who have helped make that progress possible.
This celebration brought together students, faculty, staff, senior leaders and community partners to recognize UFV’s growing commitment to sustainability, mark five years of UFV’s Office of Sustainability, celebrate the completion of the university’s new five-year Sustainability Action Pathway, and recognize UFV’s achievement of STARS Gold. Over the last five years, sustainability has become increasingly embedded across campus through initiatives involving teaching and learning, operations, energy management, climate resilience, waste reduction, sustainable transportation, biodiversity, community engagement and student participation. Here’s how:
- STARS Gold rating
Earlier this year, UFV achieved a Gold rating through the Sustainability Tracking, Assessment & Rating System (STARS), a globally recognized sustainability reporting framework administered by the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education. The achievement marks a significant milestone in UFV’s sustainability journey. Elevating the university from a Silver rating to Gold recognizes years of progress across teaching, research, campus operations, planning, governance, and campus community engagement.
- Sustainable Certification programs
The university’s Sustainable Event Certification program is one example of how sustainability has become part of everyday campus practices. Since its launch in 2022, more than 40 UFV events have been certified for incorporating environmental and social sustainability practices.
- March for Sustainability
Multiple departments across the university come together every spring for March for Sustainability to provide fun, educational activities aligning with the United Nations’ sustainable development goals and the five “P’s” of sustainable development: people, planet, prosperity, peace, and partnership. March for Sustainability addresses topics like climate change, biodiversity, EDI, gender equality through cooking classes, open mic nights, board games, gardening workshops, cedar weaving and much more. The slate of events also includes a waste audit of the trash produced on campus. By sorting through paper products, food waste, and plastic packaging, the Office of Sustainability uses the waste audit results to inform future waste management improvements on campus.
- EV charger installations
Through a partnership with BC Hydro, UFV has increased electric vehicle (EV) charging options at its Abbotsford and Chilliwack campuses. The Chilliwack campus has added two direct current fast chargers (four charge points) close to Building A, which can add up to 180 kilometers of driving to an average EV in about 10 minutes. There are also four Level Two chargers at the Trades & Technology Centre (TTC) on the Chilliwack campus. The Abbotsford campus has added four fast chargers, allowing up to eight EVs to charge at the same time, along with four Level Two charging spots, located in the southwest corner of Lot 10 by the Student Union Building. The new BC Hydro EV chargers have a mix of connectors that allow all types of EVs to connect. In total, up to 23 vehicles can now be charged at any given time on the Abbotsford campus, and up to 14 can be charged in Chilliwack.
- FortisBC partnership
A partnership between UFV and FortisBC showcased cutting-edge gas absorption heat pump (GAHP) technology at the UFV Chilliwack campus Trades and Technology Centre (TTC). Seven GAHPs have been installed at the TTC. They are estimated to save 860 gigajoules of natural gas, and 37 tonnes of greenhouse gases annually.
Looking toward the next five years
The completion of UFV’s new provides a roadmap for the next five years, building on the university’s previous achievements while identifying opportunities for continued action and collaboration.
“What we have achieved is the result of people across UFV deciding that sustainability matters and then turning that commitment into action,” says Doran Hoge, Director of Energy and Sustainability. “The STARS Gold achievement and our new Sustainability Action Pathway are important milestones, but they are really markers along a much longer journey. The next five years give us an opportunity to build on this momentum and make sustainability an even more integral part of how UFV operates, teaches, learns and engages with our communities.”
As UFV begins the next five years of its Sustainability Action Pathway, the message from September’s celebration was clear: sustainability is not a destination. It is an ongoing commitment to learning, collaboration and action.
And that journey is one that belongs to the entire UFV community.
