Written with support from Najeebuddin Mohammed
To address climate change and encourage environmental sustainability, the University of Waterloo has strengthened its sustainability strategy and has developed an action plan to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050.
As this will impact all areas of campus, GSEF has partnered with the Sustainability Office to create the “Environment Sustainability Award” to fund projects designed to benefit graduate students and improve ecological sustainability. This award aims to promote activities like recycling programs, sustainability awareness campaigns, and waste reduction initiatives.
The Biology GSA was the first recipient of this award, for their initiative “Biology Zero Waste”. Their aim was to reduce the plastic waste produced during their events by purchasing reusable items cutlery, plates, trays, and cutting boards.
They bought their utensils from the Zero Waste Bulk store and ordered small wooden bins from a local woodworker to store their utensils. The initiative was able to support small businesses in the Kitchener-Waterloo Region alongside their main objective of reducing waste.
GSEF congratulates their efforts and hopes to fund many such projects in the future! This initiative by the Biology GSA serves as an excellent example of how we can all contribute towards environmental sustainability in our own way.
If you or our student group have any ideas that can energize the graduate student experience while promoting sustainable causes, please visit the “Apply for project funding” page for more information or contact our Coordinator at gsef@uwaterloo.ca. You can also check out other projects that GSEF has funded in the past.