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Friday, April 24, 2009 2 comments Recommendations made to Okanagan College Executive Posted by: Arnica Rowan at 10:28:00 AM Your sustainability team has been hard at work. Our first two mandates were to come up with an action list for short-term, inexpensive and easy-to-implement changes to make the college more sustainable recommend an organizational structure that will enable the creation of a long-term sustainability plan Throughout March, we held open houses and conducted an extensive survey of OC students and staff. Then specialty groups rated and ranked ideas to come up with a feasible, high-impact list of action steps. At the end of March, we were proud to present a document, Our Short-term Action Plan for Sustainable Change, to Okanagan College President Jim Hamilton. Since then, we have also presented to the college executive and leadership team. Our recommendations will be presented to the Board of Governors in May. In the meanwhile, our work hasn't stopped. We have worked on a recommended administrative structure for Okanagan College's sustainability, and will be presenting that to our President at the end of the month. We'll keep you informed about our project, and share the recommendations and projects when they have been fully approved.
Friday, March 13, 2009 0 comments Rating and Ranking Posted by: Arnica Rowan at 5:04:57 PM Hey dude! - where's my survey? The survey is now complete - but don't worry, this won't be the last time that there is an opportunity to get involved. More than 100 people filled out the survey between March 1st and 6th and shared their thoughts on how to make Okanagan College more sustainable. We have taken all your ideas, compiled them with elements of the STARS program, and organized them for review. This week and next, 12 groups of volunteers throughout the institution will evaluate and rate the ideas. Each group will make suggestions, which will result in projects, approaches and policies that will be included in a recommended short-term action plan at the end of the month. If you made any long-term recommendations, those have also been considered, talked about, and filed for when we create a long-term sustainability plan in the future. Project leader Arnica Rowan would like to thank everyone who visited the open houses, shared ideas and supported the Three Steps Forward project so far. As the famous cultural anthropologist Margaret Mead once said, "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has."
Thursday, March 05, 2009 0 comments Penticton Open House - the Talks Continue Posted by: Arnica Rowan at 7:38:21 PM Thursday our Open House made its last stop in Penticton. The people who stopped and visited contributed lots of ideas. We found that many of the same staff issues came up across the campuses, ie: campus to campus transportation. Each campus had its own concerns as well, which we made sure went into the survey. Thank you for the warm reception in Penticton and thanks to the staff and students who took the time to contribute ideas.
Wednesday, March 04, 2009 0 comments Kelowna Open House - Good Exposure Posted by: Arnica Rowan at 7:43:00 PM In Kelowna we found that many students had already heard about our project in class, and many staff members had already completed the survey online. It's great to hear the word is getting out so well. We still managed to find several students in "the pit" and in the trades hallways who hadn't heard about us and wanted to contribute their ideas. Not surprisingly, student feedback was similar throughout the KLO campus, focusing on public transportation, recycling and composting. Thanks to everyone in Kelowna who chatted with us and shared their ideas, as well as everyone who has submitted their feedback online. Also thanks to "Kermie" for making a cameo appearance!
Tuesday, March 03, 2009 0 comments Vernon Open House - full of students Posted by: Arnica Rowan at 7:47:00 PM Our first Open House was held in Vernon on Tuesday, March 3, 2009. There were lots of engaged students who stopped to find out more and fill out the survey, as well as a bunch of willing staff members. Thanks to the Vernon crowd for a good turnout! If you missed us in Vernon, don't forget you can still fill out the survey until Friday, March 6. Just click on the link on the left!
Monday, March 02, 2009 0 comments Collecting Ideas Posted by: Arnica Rowan at 10:50:00 AM Everyone at Okanagan College has ideas to make the organization more environmentally, as well as socially and financially responsible – and we want to hear yours! Please join us at an Open House or take a moment to fill out our on-line survey. All the ideas will be collected, considered, sifted, and then evaluated by experts throughout the institution. The short-term recommendations will be bundled in a recommendation document for college leadership at the end of March. Have your say! Fill out the survey today!
Saturday, February 21, 2009 0 comments Deciding on an Assessment Tool Posted by: Arnica Rowan at 10:42:00 AM After careful research and consideration, the Sustainability Team has decided to recommend that our institution sign the Talloires Declaration – a commitment towards to environmental sustainability in higher education. We have also examined different assessment tools, and have decided the STARS assessment model from the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education is a good fit for our institution. We are not yet a member – but we are using the categories of interest to guide our internal research and ideas generation.