Sustainable Futures

The impact of climate change on the ever-evolving landscape of sustainability and business was explored on Thursday during the inaugural Hub for Sustainability Integration Conference.

The conference, held at the Delta Hotel in Toronto, was hosted by the Hub for Sustainability Integration — a partnership between the School of Accounting and Finance and the Faculty of Environment at the University of Waterloo.   

To celebrate World Water Day in 2018, Autumn Peltier gave a heartfelt address to the United Nations General Assembly in New York.  

“Now is the time to warrior-up and empower each other to take a stand for our planet,” said Peltier, who was 13 years old at the time and stood on a stool so that she could reach the microphone. 

The Ontario government recently announced funding for five University of Waterloo faculty members to advance their research projects. The announcement was made as part of an investment into Ontario-based researchers whose projects will help to create jobs, technologies and accelerate economic growth. 

The five Waterloo researchers will receive funding through the Early Researcher Awards program — a program that gives research funds to new researchers working at publicly funded Ontario research institutions to build a research team.  

Though matters of climate change, biodiversity loss and Indigenous Peoples’ health and well-being are often considered separately, the three are linked in innumerable ways. 

While people worldwide are experiencing the impacts of climate change and biodiversity losses, Indigenous Peoples are most disproportionately and acutely affected. 

Recently reported ecosystem changes and impacts on biodiversity are described as extensive, severe and dramatically declining, including aquatic, atmospheric, terrestrial and most notably, cryospheric changes. 

Ontario's agricultural sector plays a significant role in the province's economy. In 2021, agriculture contributed nearly $10 billion to Ontario's GDP, employing 67,000 people directly and over 740,000 in related agri-food industries. However, the environmental impact of modern farming practices cannot be overlooked. Especially, large-scale industrial farming practices can contribute to soil erosion, water and air pollution and biodiversity loss.

And as climate change impacts continue to escalate, the imperative for sustainable farming practices becomes ever more pressing.

University of Waterloo researchers have created a new technology that can remove harmful microplastics from contaminated water with 94 per cent efficiency.

The amount of plastic pollution in our ecosystem has become an increasingly alarming concern globally. Concerns have frequently been flagged about the impact that plastic pollution has on the toxicity to the environment and humans.

A research team led by Dr. Richard Kelly, a professor in Geography and Environmental Management at Waterloo, uses a novel radar-based technology to provide more insight into snowpacks and their implications for climate change, water resource management and hazard prediction.

Snowpacks form in cold regions and high elevations, accumulating due to layers upon layers of snow. As they melt, snowpacks serve as vital water resources — feeding streams, rivers and reservoirs.

Dr. Nadine Ibrahim, a professor in the University of Waterloo’s Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and the Turkstra Chair in Urban Engineering, never misses a chance to inspire her students to think about how the application of their knowledge could create solutions that improve and sustain our humanity and prosperity.  

On March 5, eight local charities pitched their organization’s story and impact at the Perfect Pitch 2024 event, presented by the philanthropic organization, Social Venture Partners Waterloo Region (SVPWR). The Perfect Pitch workshop series provided each charity with a team of dedicated coaches, including University of Waterloo alumni, who offered personal coaching, practice opportunities and feedback, all leading up to their final pitch at Federation Hall.  

There’s an irony to air conditioning.  

Traditional air conditioners condense water out of the air, a very energy-intensive process which pumps greenhouse gases into the environment. So, as we cool our indoors, we heat the climate even more.  

Velocity-based company Evercloak can break this cycle. The clean-tech startup has raised $2 million from Bioindustrial Innovation Canada, Greensoil Proptech Ventures, GroundBreak Ventures, Ontario Centre for Innovation (OCI) and angel investors.