Photo credit: Brigitte Morin Il n’est pas toujours évident lorsqu’on fait notre liste d’épicerie que les produits que nous aimons sont vendus ou non dans des contenants qui sont complètement recyclable. Si vous habitez à Gatineau, les types de plastique 1, 2, 4, 5, et 7 sont recyclables dans votre bac bleu. Si vous habitez à Ottawa, les types de plastique no 1,2 et 5 sont recyclables dans votre bac bleu. Vérifiez toujours le type de plastique dans le symbole de recyclage sous chaque produit en plastique. Un exemple serait le yogourt; choisissez les grands contenants avec la pellicule de métal au lieu du contenant avec la pellicule de plastique. Un autre bon exemple est les craquelins; qui n’aime pas des craquelins avec une trempette ou dans son dîner? Bien, la plus part des craquelins sont vendus dans des sacs de plastique à l’intérieur de sa boîte. Ma solution? J’ai trouvé deux compagnies qui fabriquent des craquelins sans sac de plastique : ‘Aliments vivants’ (certains sont composta...

Photo credit: Brigitte Morin I wonder if the new tax of 5 ¢ per bag at the grocery store actually encouraged people to bring their own bags. Also, why isn’t there a tax for the plastic produce bags? I own three types of bags to bring shopping with me: I have my large reusable grocery bags which I am sure you have all received at the last conference or event you attended; I have a large produce bag to carry my apples, and other larger products; I also have small reusable produce bags for green beans, herbs, etc. I used to use the plastic ones from the grocery store, but I purchased some reusable produce bags which can double as cheesecloth and laundry bags. They cost 11$ (for three bags) the Herb and Spice on Bank St, but you can always make your own using left-over materials or an old t-shirt. -brigitte http://thesustainabilitree.blogspot.com/

Photo credit: Brigitte Morin Je me demande si depuis la nouvelle taxe de 5 ¢ par sac de plastique à l’épicerie a encourager les gens d’emporter leur propres sacs. Aussi, pourquoi les gens ne se font pas aussi charger pour les sacs en plastique pour les produits frais? J’emporte trois types de sacs réutilisables à l’épicerie avec moi : j’ai les grands sacs pour mettre tous mes produits à la caisse (je suis certaine que vous en avez tous quelques-uns qui trainent depuis la dernière conférence ou évènement); j’ai aussi deux types de sacs pour mes produits frais, un petit pour mes fèves et petits fruits, et un plus gros pour mes pommes, céleri, etc. J’utilisais les sacs en plastique pour les produits frais, mais je me suis procuré des sacs réutilisables qui peuvent aussi être utilisé pour laver mes légumes et comme sac de lavage. Ils m’ont coûté 11$ (pour trois sacs) à la boutique Herb and Spice sur la rue Bank, mais vous pouvez aussi en fabriquer à partir de vieux t- shirts ou morceaux de...

Photo credit: apt613.ca Hier, comme tous les autres matins, je regardais par la fenêtre du 95 Orléans avec un air absent. Il n’y a rien de plus cruel dans ma vie qu’un cours sur la théorie des organisations publiques à 8 h 30 du mat. Soudain, en passant près du Parc de la confédération, je me suis rappelé que c’était le Bal des neiges à Ottawa! J’adore les activités municipales/fédérales/communautaires. Je pense bien que la fête du Canada est ma journée préférée de l’année simplement à cause du vent d’animation qui s’empare brusquement de la ville. C’est plus fort que moi, je raffole des festivités générales! Mais quel est le rapport avec le développement durable, vous me direz? Eh bien, considérons pour un instant les éléments qui font l’objet du triangle du développement durable : L’environnement, la société et l’économie. Les activités qu’organise votre communauté, du Bal des neiges au Fringe festival en passant par le Festival des tulipes, La Semaine 101, le Festival des neiges...

Photo Credit: Jonathan Rausseo I am not a Tefler School of Management student. To be frank, I am not even close. My brother is taking business and he reminds me how different our programs are at every family dinner conversation. We mostly argue about globalization, my sister and brother form an alliance against me as I squirm to convince them of the detrimental environmental and social effects of its processes on developing countries. As an Environmental Studies and Geography student, I did not think we would ever be attending the same school function. And yet, the Tefler School of Management is holding its third annual Sustainable Business Conference on Friday February 11th, and I will be attending. This conference aims to promote sustainability in business and it is targeted at business students but the speaker’s topics of interest range from sustainability in the fashion industry to crowd sourcing, making it accessible and relevant to many. Emphasizing the “triple bottom line” (envi...

Photo Credit: Jonathan Rausseo La fin de semaine dernière, j’ai pris part à une formation pour un programme incroyable! DILA, (A Day of Learning for a Lifetime of Action ou, en français, une journée d’information pour une vie d’action) est en quelque sorte une journée de rêve pour tous ceux qui ont espoir de changer le monde. C’est le projet de Jason Collard, un ancien de l’Université d’Ottawa, qui dans le but de contrer le cynisme qui règne dans notre société vis-à-vis des changements de justice sociale et de développement durable, rassemble des jeunes des quatres coins de la ville pendant une seule journée et leur donne le droit d’immaginer un monde meilleur. Non seulement DILA motive et informe grâce à la collaboration de plusieurs ONGs qui seront sur place, mais aussi la conférence donne des outils aux jeunes pour mettre en marche un plan d’action concret dans leur communauté post-DILA. À la fin février, durant la semaine de relâche, je donnerai de mon temps au programme pour assis...

Photo credit: www.buzbury.com How do you feel about brushing your teeth with a twig? No, we’re not talking about your favourite panda bear but about the reinvention of the toothbrush. A design student was asked by her professor to redesign the next object she disposed of and for Leen Sadder, it was a tube of toothpaste. After contemplation and research, the most efficient design was not in fact a new product but borrowing the predominantly Middle Eastern and South Asian technique of using “miswak”. For those of you who are not so keenly into tree anatomy, miswak is a twig from an Arak tree and has been attributed to religious beliefs of Muslims. The use of twigs for dental hygiene is promoted by the World Health Organization and has been shown to kill gum disease, fight plaque and gingivitis and remove bad breath. All such benefits have been proved in studies to be more effective than your everyday plastic toothbrush. Interestingly enough, the use of one of these twigs has also been sh...

Photo Credit: Jonathan Rausseo I see garbage on the ground, I pick it up and put it in the trash. I drink an iced tea, I carry it until I see a recycling bin I see a light on and not in use, I turn in off I know we're both going to the same place, I carpool I don't agree with where my meat and produce comes from, I won't eat it I turn the lights off during Earth hour I know that something's in walking distance, I walk I see someone throw away a can when the recycling bin if five steps away, I get annoyed I have clothes that are too small for me, I donate them In my mind, I'm a pretty average guy, just tryin' to do my part. Apparently I'm a 'hardcore environmentalist'. For the longest time I didn't get it; the title really pissed me off. 'Not being a jerk when you don't have to be' is considered being 'hardcore'. But through the last month of Katimavik, living and co-operating with 10 other people and trying to make compromises...

Every year a dedicated group of workaholic students get together and do their part to make the Telfer School of Management at the University of Ottawa a little greener and a little more equitable. I say workaholic because the hours that they put in this event could only be accomplished by fanatics. And yet every year, (and don't ask me how) these young students, these pillars of the campus, somehow find the time in their busy schedules to make the Annual Sustainable Business Conference happen. Three years ago, a couple of students took it upon themselves to create a conference at Telfer that would challenge the reckless impact that business can have on the environment. The organizers toyed with the idea of focusing on things like mining and big oil, you know... as a way of garnering some controversy and generating some deep reflection about where funding for the University comes from. The first conference was well attended and surprisingly insightful. I mean, it was put together by...

I am a Katimavik volunteer that has been placed in Ottawa to live with eleven other people in a house for 6 months. It is my second day of work and I am loving it. I got placed at the University of Ottawa in the sustainability unit with one other person from my household. Ottawa is definitely something to see, I am from a small town in Saskatchewan and not a whole lot goes on there. Today we went through the campus and placed paper towel recycling signs in the washrooms hoping that the students will take the time to look and agree that this is a good idea. If this catches on we can reuse the paper towel which adds up and would contribute to saving our planet. There is still so much to do, as I am slowly learning. Every Monday morning we have staff meetings where everyone touches on what they did during the week before. I am realizing there is so much that goes on in this work place and its neat finding out so much about what these fantastic people are doing. They are all over the place...

Photo Credit: CBC Radio Jon and Bridget sat my partner Shredder and I down at the meeting table, and my mind was blown. We came in halfway through the meeting with no sort of context or lead in, so for the first bit I had no idea what was going on, but then they started talking about uPass. Now I'm not very familiar with the going ons of Ottawa yet (I've only been here a few times previous to living here) but it doesn't take a genius to see that Ottawa has a pretty damn intense bus system. Coming from a lifestyle where I owned a car and I lived in Calgary - a place where most non-drivers get around via subway - I was kinda daunted when I realised the only transit left available to me was the bus (or walking). And frankly, I gotta say that it doesn't make much sense that a city of 812 000 people (which is probably almost double that in tourists), isn't outfitted with a train system, as it'd be faster, more efficient, and the city's infrastructure is basical...

Dans l’esprit de RecycloManie, et aussi pour agir d’exemple; je vais m’engager à vivre sans déchets pendant deux mois. Ce que j’entends par cela est que je vais acheter seulement des produits qui viennent dans des contenants réutilisables et recyclables; ex. un contenant de yogourt qui est réutilisable, avec une pellicule en métal recyclable serait un article acceptable vs. un contenant qui a une pellicule en plastique non recyclable. Ce sera un défi pour moi de vivre sans déchets pour deux mois; je suis actuellement en train d’évaluer tous les produits que j’utilise et lesquels produisent un déchet quelconque. J’ai trouvé une excellente recette pour des tablettes granola au chocolat et noix de coco au lieu d’acheter des tablettes enveloppés individuellement; j’ai aussi trouvé deux magasins à Gatineau qui me laisseraient emporter mon propre contenant pour acheter du fromage de toute sorte (La Trappe à Fromage); et des articles en vrac bio (Gagné en Santé). À Ottawa, il y a la boutique ...

Photo Credit: http://ufsustainability.blogspot.com Today was arguably one of the coldest days that most of us have ever experienced. The downside (putting aside the fact that I couldn't feel my fingers, legs, toes, and all other parts of my body while biking to work today) is that the University has been curtailed! What does that mean? Well don't feel bad if you don't know... I mean seriously, there is no reason why you should know. What it means is that the University has to burn oil instead of natural gas. Yes, dirty, ugly, oil. Unfortunately this is a fact of life because of the weather. Once temperatures get this cold the University has to stop burning natural gas so that there is enough natural gas for residential houses. Oh well. This got me thinking though. I wanted to know how much CO2 was being generated by this oil that we had to burn. I never actually found out. But it did find out something else. It turns out that the University of Ottawa has achieved its Kyoto ...

Source: Museum of Nature So, my time working in this office is drawing to a close, and I feel that a parting message is in order. That’s not to say that I won’t ever blog again, but it won’t really be a regular occurrence, and I won’t be buzzing around this office spreading my crazy anymore. By spreading my crazy, I mean being “productive” or something to that effect. I began my journey here last April, with only a basic idea of what exactly it is that I was to be doing. My idea of sustainability was pretty loose, at best, and my life definitely had a lot of room for improvement in that department. I found the growth of knowledge to be exponential; both with respect to the campus as a community and in the greater scope of the world. I began using a reusable water bottle and convinced my entire family to follow suit; we have now eliminated a substantial expenditure AND eliminated roughly 850 plastic water bottles from passing through our house yearly. I have increased my knowledge of r...

Photo credit: http://d-studio.sauder.ubc.ca/ On m’a récemment demandée : «Quel genre d’activiste environnementale es-tu? » Cette question m’a prise par surprise car jamais encore je ne m’étais considérée comme tel. Je suis plutôt du genre à croire que les changements de société se font en douce, un individu à la fois. Et c’est avec un esprit et un cœur ouvert que je participe au «tournant vert». Pour moi, l’intégration de la dimension durable dans nos modes de vie est une fin en soi; elle n’a pas besoin de justification allant au-delà de ses prémisses de base. Pourquoi le développement durable? Parce que les ressources à la base de notre vie ne sont pas infinies, parce que nous sommes beaucoup trop connaissante comme société pour dénier le lien intrinsèque qui nous lie à la Terre et parce qu’il est moralement impossible pour moi de ne pas considérer l’impact que mes actes ont sur l’immédiat et le futur. Si de nos jours, vouloir travailler pour une organisation partageant cette façon de...