Provide your feedback on Lakehead's next sustainability plan
Lakehead University is developing its second Sustainability Plan (2026-2030). Our inaugural Sustainability Plan, launched in 2019, was a milestone for sustainability at Lakehead. It helped create a centralized structure for sustainability at the University, including an Office of Sustainability and a sustainable governance framework. The Sustainability Stewardship Council, a group with multi-stakeholder representation, was formed to create and guide the implementation of the inaugural Plan.
More than five years later, the Office of Sustainability is reflecting on the achievements and lessons learned over this time period. Since 2019, the University has placed repeatedly in the top 100 universities in the world in advancing the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, declared and implemented a university-wide Year of Climate Action (YOCA), divested our endowment from fossil fuel stocks (becoming the sixth Canadian university to do so), installed electric vehicle charging stations on our Thunder Bay campus, and developed new waste initiatives. Many other sustainability initiatives in the inaugural Plan have also been achieved or are currently underway. We thank all those who have contributed - this work cannot be achieved without your participation and collaboration.
While the implementation of the first Plan has built relationships on and off campus, and created the groundwork for a long-term commitment to sustainability at Lakehead, there is an opportunity at present to pause and reflect. What have we learned? What have our challenges been? The next Sustainability Plan will build on these lessons so that we can deepen our collective commitment to sustainability.
Becoming a sustainable university is not easy. In its most meaningful sense, sustainability requires a shift in culture. It calls us to open our minds and be willing to engage in difficult conversations. For a sustainability program to flourish at Lakehead, it also needs to reflect the context of our community, and the community needs to feel a shared ownership of the program. That’s why we want to hear from you. Your voice matters.
The Office of Sustainability has created a series of engagement opportunities for the Lakehead community to help guide the development of the next Sustainability Plan. This is your opportunity to influence how sustainability is prioritized at Lakehead.
We invite your feedback in the following ways:
- Fill out our survey (survey closes April 4).
- Drop by the Listening Tree in the Agora and write your creative ideas and wishes for sustainability at Lakehead on a leaf. (Orillia Learning Commons forthcoming).
- Arrange a focus group or 1:1 conversation with the Office of Sustainability in April or May. Contact lpmckell@lakeheadu.ca to schedule.
We look forward to your feedback, and to creating the next stage of sustainability programming at Lakehead University.