Sustainability Scholars Program

The City of Vancouver is considering the role energy benchmarking of large commercial and institutional buildings could play in supporting energy reductions targeted in existing policy. An initial benchmarking process has been used to identify potential difficulties for a city-wide benchmarking initiative. Challenges encountered and lessons learned have been identified in this document. Examples include methods of obtaining data and data reliability as well as challenges associated with multi-use or multi-building properties.

Partner: City of Vancouver
Keywords: climate and renewables, green buildings

This project was produced for BC Hydro to identify trends that could impact future electricity consumption and effect  meeting their 66% energy savings target. The project involved a high-level scan of a range of social, technological and utility trends, followed by an in-depth analysis of Big Data and Analytics, and Networked Citizens to understand their influence on electricity generation, consumption, and future service provision.

Partner: BC Hydro
Keywords: social sustainability, sustainable development & green economy

Studies on telecommuting have shown many qualitative benefits, such as increased productivity and improved work-life balance. However, research on quantitative benefits focuses primarily upon the energy and cost savings related to decreased oil consumption from reduced travel distance. The intention of this project was to provide background on current telecommuting and hoteling practices, as well as to investigate the potential energy savings due to the lowered utilization of office space and equipment.

Partner: BC Hydro
Keywords: sustainable development & green economy

The overarching purpose of this project is to identify how the Musqueam community understands sustainability. The first goal was to assess how the community perceives sustainability on the reserve today and the second goal was to identify concerns and priorities. These goals work to further the objectives of the Musqueam Comprehensive Community Plan. 

Partner: Musqueum
Keywords: social sustainability

This purpose of this project was to facilitate the Healthy UBC program in running an effective, evidence based health promotion program and to help UBC realize their goal of creating a progressive, sustainable work culture. The objectives were: build an evidence base to inform programming; identify how the organization can support and enable sustainable health promotion initiatives implemented at the department level; review existing evaluation tools; and make recommendations on how to best assess and demonstrate the unit’s overall impact on campus.

Partner: UBC Human Resources
Keywords: social sustainability

Beginning in Fall 2013, the University of British Columbia began one of its largest public engagement processes to guide and inform the 20-Year Sustainability Strategy. This project involved the production of an engagement summary as well as identification of UBC climate action targets that will be used to monitor the implementation of UBC’s climate goals.

Partner: UBC Sustainability Initiative
Keywords: leadership & behaviour change, social sustainability

In response to a number of City of Vancouver and Park Board plans, the City’s Sustainability Group and Park Board piloted a local food menu at park and beach concessions. This report aimed to evaluate best practices for local, sustainable, and/or healthy food procurement in other North American municipalities as well as to review current research regarding consumer preference for local or sustainable food. The report also discusses the findings from a survey on the public response to the Park Board concession local food pilot. 

Partner: City of Vancouver
Keywords: local food, food systems, social sustainability

This report aims to address the challenges involved in establishing a Green Enterprise Zone in the False Creek Flats industrial area by outlining a number of tactical, on-the-ground actions that can be taken by the Vancouver Economic Commission (VEC). It demonstrates ways in which the tools employed by the VEC can be leveraged to ground pieces of the greater economic development vision for the False Creek Flats and support local planning initiatives as VEC works towards a complementary Eastern Core Local Area Plan.

Partner: City of Vancouver
Keywords: green economy, sustainable development & green economy

Urban wildlife animates our green spaces and birds bring our city to life with their songs and flight, creating excellent opportunities to experience biodiversity in the city. Birds also provide ecosystem services in the form of pest control, pollination and seed-dispersal The “Bird-Friendly Landscape Design Guidelines” will support the development of bird habitat throughout the City of Vancouver. The document is intended for policy makers, developers, planners, landscape architects, operations staff and residential gardeners. When used in conjunction with the “Bird-Friendly Building Guidelines,” urban design throughout our city can become more bird-friendly.

Partner: City of Vancouver
Keywords: access to nature, biodiversity, ecological systems