Sustainability at Concordia
April 2024 Newsletter
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Let's start the spring off with some good news: after much support from the Concordia Student Union (CSU) and many student groups, the Concordia Greenhouse has found a temporary home during the asbestos removal. The Greenhouse will now be temporarily located in the 7th Floor of the Hall Building, and will continue brining greenery and agricultural education for everyone to enjoy. Greenhouse operation hours may vary as they get settled into their new home. Note that the majority their working groups have temporarily moved to Loyola to start the growing season. |
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Concordia hosts the 9th National Fair Trade ConferenceSince being named Canada’s 17th Fair Trade Campus in August 2016, Concordia has continuously expanded its fair-trade initiatives. The university began by adopting 100 per cent fair-trade sugar and bananas and, in 2022, it introduced its own organic fair-trade coffee, Stingers Roast. “Concordia’s commitment to fair trade is unwavering,” says Oliver de Volpi, manager of Food Services. “We recognize the importance of fair wages, improved working conditions and community investment for producers.” |
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Concordia postdoctoral researcher unites the power of Indigenous and Western scienceThaïs Bernos, a postdoctoral researcher in Concordia’s Department of Biology, is breaking new ground in fisheries research working with Indigenous communities. In cooperation with the Cree Nation of Eeyou Istchee, in Northern Quebec, Bernos seeks to draw on multiple knowledge systems to better understand the relationships between culturally important fish species and the people that depend on them. “I’m part of the FISHES project, a major collaboration between Indigenous communities and researchers from several universities,” she explains. “Although I normally work with fish, my role in the FISHES project is more to establish the link between Indigenous and Western science, which means I mainly work with people.” |
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Celebrating Sustainability with CUCCR Tuesday, April 2 – Thursday, April 4 In the lead-up to Earth Day, the Concordia University Centre for Creative Reuse (CUCCR) and the Office of Sustainability will be hosting a celebratory showcase of some of our sustainability initiatives and offerings.
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Tuesday, April 1-8 (Exhibit) & April 4 @ 7 - 9 p.m. (Vernissage), Hive Cafe Solidarity Co-op (H-239), 1455 de Maisonneuve Blvd. W. Entangled Eating aims to foster discussions on what food means to us and sociopolitical implications of food at this time. Themes range from food as community connection to food scarcity and justice. Sustain'Alive: Sustainable Opulence Tuesday, April 2 @ 6 - 8 p.m., SHIFT Centre for Social Transformation LB-145 As artistic forms like drag becomes more mainstream, there is an increase in the production of fast fashion versions of the fabrics, clothing, accessories, jewels, and wigs we use to express ourselves. With the increased vitriol towards gender expression, trans people, and drag performers in this country, it’s important for us to have spaces where we can gather outside of traditional queer spaces like bars and clubs. We want to provide our community with an opportunity to deepen connections to each other, while also gaining skills to become less reliant on traditional capitalist systems to build art and artistic expression. Friday, April 5 @ 12 - 4 p.m., Le Frigo Vert 1440 Mackay Spring is here! Give your closet a refresh by coming to the SAP Clothing Swap. We hope this event will encourage people to develop more sustainable relationships with clothing. Anyone is welcome to join, bring a few of your old clothes in good condition and leave with some gems that others brought. Enjoy some snacks and music while you are here too! Montreal Premiere of SOLIDARITY (with Guests) Monday, April 8 @ 7 p.m., Hall Building H110 1455 de Maisonneuve Blvd. W. The Montreal premiere of SOLIDARITY (dir. Lucy Parker) followed by a Q&A director Lucy Parker, hosted by Cinema Politica Concordia. Wednesday, April 10 @ 12 - 3 p.m., G-Lounge (CC-408), 7141 rue Sherbrooke W. Materials provided. Participants will have the opportunity to create handmade journals made from upcycled materials. Students will have the opportunity to learn how to make a basic journal by hand using a variety of media to encourage the use of sustainable art practices as well as having a tactile, stimulating journal that participants can later use in their day to day for mindful reflection. Wednesday, April 10 @ 2 - 5 p.m., 4th Space, 1400 De Maisonneuve Blvd. W. (or virtual) What if a performance lasted as long as a geological epoch, a season, or the life of a tree? How would you create a festival together with mycelium? How would you collaborate with a koala? What if you had the budget for a planet-scale event? How is the meaning of an existing work affected by an ecological entity? How is a new work definited by it? Join us as students present their take on these prompts in a five minute presentation envisioning a wildly ambitious ecological design for existing work (play, song, event, dance, etc.), or a work developed together with an ecological entity. Dinner & Docs Night: The Problem with Aramark Wednesday, April 10 @ 5 - 7 p.m., Multifaith and Spirituality Centre Kitchen and Lounge, Z Annex, 2090 Mackay This month we’re teaming up with the CUTV this month to showcase a compelling campus-made documentary! Want a free tasty meal? Come help cook a vegetarian meal in the community kitchen! We’ll eat and get into this month’s feature film: “The Problem with Aramark” and discuss alternatives to the corporate campus food provider. Conference on Digital Sobriety in Information Management Wednesday, April 17 @ 10 a.m. - 1 p.m., 4th Space, 1400 De Maisonneuve Blvd. W. (or virtual) Join us for this symposium offering presentations by experts in sustainability! With presentations by four specialists from various fields, learn more about the environmental impact of digital technology and ways to reduce our digital management footprint through digital sobriety strategies. Transit Town Hall: Fare-free, Accessible and Expanded Public Transit - A Climate Justice Perspective Wednesday, April 17 @ 6 p.m., Noviciat Rm Cité-des-Hospitalières 251 ave. des Pins Come discuss the possibility of fare-free, expanded and accessible public transit in Montreal at this town hall. Members of CJM will be on hand to discuss a climate justice perspective to building an inclusive path to building a cross-movement coalition that will bring about one of the pillars of a just city for all. April 16-18 @ 10 a.m. - 4 p.m., GN Swing Space, 1175 rue St-Mathieu Join us at the Kids Free Stuff Bazaar and discover useful items for your little ones. Don't forget to bring along your shopping bag! April 26 @ 1 - 3 p.m., TB Building, 7079 Terrebonne Interested in learning more about biodiversity and the natural world? Or do you jut want to get outside and enjoy the great outdoors? Here's a great chance. Join us on the Loyola campus to participate in the City Nature Challenge. This is an international competition encouraging citizen scientist to help out the scientific community by documenting local wildlife. All observations are uploaded to the Concordia's iNaturalist project, where they can be access by ecology researchers world wide. |
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Let's stay in touch!
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Office of Sustainability |