In 10 years, some trees can grow anywhere from 10 to 25 feet tall, so when York University announces its goal to reach net zero emissions a decade sooner, it’s a target that can lead to a significant and positive impact on the environment – enough time for a forest to grow. In November, the University announced additional sustainability measures that follow its sustainability action commitment launched early in the year. 

The University has strengthened its ambition to reach net zero emissions by 2040, 10 years sooner than its original commitment. It’s a goal the whole University community is pitching in to meet through individual actions, research and innovative solutions and is one of the most ambitious net zero targets in the Canadian post-secondary sector.

Sustainability is embedded in all facets of university life and every new initiative will help drive it forward. Even before the most recent announcement, York was a leader in sustainability. The University is on track to meet its goal of reducing emissions by 45 per cent by 2030, three years early, and recently opened applications for its new $1 million Sustainability Innovation Fund to support community-led projects toward a more sustainable future.

“The United Nations has stated that climate change is the defining issue of our time, and the world is at a pivotal moment requiring urgent action,” says York University President and Vice-Chancellor Rhonda Lenton. “As an internationally recognized leader in sustainability, York University has a responsibility to act on global challenges facing humanity, including ecological degradation, climate change and growing socio-economic inequality.”

More than $2 million from the federal government, through its Decarbonization and Incentive Program, will help York upgrade its Energy Management Information System. This will allow the University to integrate campus operations system data into an analytics platform that uses artificial intelligence to improve energy efficiency for heating and cooling and create student experiential learning opportunities to support its Campus as a Living Lab.

“The urgency for action to advance sustainability and climate initiatives has never been greater. York is on a course to build on an already strong reputation for advancing sustainability initiatives on our campuses, in our community and around the world,” says York University Chief Sustainability Officer Mike Layton.

York is the first Canadian institution to compile and release data on its ecological footprint and emissions. The report by the Ecological Footprint Initiative provides the University more information than ever to identify new opportunities to reduce emissions and develop innovative solutions to support a more sustainable future.

The event included a panel featuring York scholars – The shrinking act: How York is using data and innovative solutions to shrink its footprint – was moderated by Layton with Eric Miller, director, York’s Ecological Footprint Initiative in the Faculty of Environmental and Urban Change; Lassonde School of Engineering Associate Professor Pirathayini Srikantha, Canada Research Chair in Reliable and Secure Power Grid Systems; Lassonde School of Engineering Associate Professor and Civil Engineering Department Chair Usman Khan; and Steve Prince, director, Utilities and Energy Management at York.

There was also short play featuring two students from the theatre department of the School of the Arts, Media, Performance and Design and a brief video about sustainable travel – Advancing Carbon Neutrality at York: Reimagining Mobility – from former Provostial Fellow, Schulich School of Business Professor Burkard Eberlein.

Earlier this year the University launched its Microlecture Series in Sustainable Living, an innovative, open access program that gives participants the opportunity to learn from six of York’s world-renowned academic experts on a diverse range of topics related to sustainability. The series tasks participants with making tangible sustainability-focused changes in their daily lives based on tips from each professor towards earning a first-of-its-kind Digital Badge in Sustainable Living.

In addition, York has more than 1.2 million square feet of green buildings, has diverted 77 per cent of all waste generated from landfills and has the highest recycling rate of any post-secondary institution in Ontario. Through waste diversion, the University has prevented more than 26,000 metric tons of carbon from reaching the atmosphere – equivalent to planting more than 1.2 million trees or eliminating 61,800 barrels of oil. 

Through operational improvements, the University has avoided 35,500 tonnes of carbon dioxide per year since 2020 – equivalent to removing 7,900 gasoline powered cars from the road for a year.