The University of Ottawa is trying to create a clean air community. This is not an easy task and is often overshadowed by the other big air-related sustainability issue... climate change. But poor air quality is a huge issue and it has a direct impact on your quality of life. So we are going to discuss a few of the things uOttawa has done to improve air quality on campus, but first - a small history interlude! Imagine this, you just finished a long week of work and magically you have the entire weekend off... no reports to finish or class work to get caught up on... just time for you to relax. You decide to spend your day outside because you already spend so much time in front of a screen. So you grab your bike or your hiking shoes, choose a location, grab your water bottle, and head out. There's only one problem, when you get outside the air is dense and grey... in fact it's so thick you find it hard to breathe. It is a little hard to remember now, but there was a time in Otta...

uOttawa is one of 10 groups in Ontario being recognized by the Province for Environmental Excellence . In particular, uOttawa is being acknowledged for the Clean Air Community Initiative which works towards: Reduce greenhouse gas emissions Improve air quality and climate change resilience Showcase leadership and best management practices in climate change work Yeah I know, you're asking yourself "So what is a Clean Air Community?" Well let me tell you... a clean air community is a place that values the quality of the air in its space, especially as it related to the health and environmental impacts it can have for those breathing that air. So I am not just talking about greenhouse gas emissions, I am also talking about all the other stuff that gets pumped into the air that can make it less healthy.  This is important for a whole bunch of reasons, not the least of include that idea that dirty air can trigger allergic reactions, can induce asthmatic attacks, an...

Yesterday I had the chance to give a presentation to the new Health Promotions ambassadors. The whole thing took place in Terminus and I think things went pretty well. My job was to explain to the group why sustainability was important for the campus and why it was important for one's personal health. In turn, those ambassadors would spread the word around campus over the course of the year (no doubt during the many many many events that they participate in). There are a couple of themes that are really easy to link to health, like food and water. And of course there are a couple that aren't so easy, like energy management and green space. I did my best to fill in those blanks. For example, energy management is directly related to green house gas emissions and air quality. The more energy we burn, the more stuff we dump into the atmosphere, the worse our air quality. Poor air quality leads to a tonne of horrible health effects. Green space and nature deficit dis...