When I go back and reflect on  how all of this started, I have to be honest and start with disappointment. I did not get the sustainability coordinator job that I wanted (wink wink to my amazing colleague). Not off to a very good start , you might think . Well , life is full of surprises and three months later I got a call encouraging me to apply for the recycling coordinator position . I was passionate about waste, and it could not be that far from sustainability , so why not? Here I am, one year and a few months later, reflecting on this absolutely amazing journey.   I walked into the F acilities office at uOttawa with zero expectation s and a very open mind. T here , I found a sense of belonging and acceptance that has been quite refreshing , especially after a rocky career path since moving to Canada. I landed here in 2018 with two suitcases and a desire to pursue a career in s ustainability. I have been blessed in finding jobs easily but findin g m...

En tant que filles, nous sommes socialisées de telle sorte que ce que nous portons a de l'importance ; est-ce approprié ? Trop coloré, trop ceci ou trop cela. Nous sommes également socialisées avec l'attente sous-jacente que nos tenues doivent varier quand nous commençons notre vie professionnelle. Évidemment, cette attente a un coût : financier et environnemental. J'ai donc décidé de tenter une petite expérience et d'aller à l'encontre de cette injonction. Même si vendredi, j'étais ravie de jeter toute ma tenue au lavage et d'enfiler avec bonheur un nouvel ensemble propre, cette semaine a eu son lot de leçons que j'aimerais vous partager.  Ma tenue de la semaine se composait d'un jean, d'un débardeur noir et d'une chemise à carreaux. La seule exception à la règle de porter la même chose était, bien sûr, les sous-vêtements et les chaussettes (Ai-je besoin de passer par là ? Non ? Bien, continuez à lire.) Ma première découverte (surprenante)...

 As girls, we are socialized in a way that what we wear matters; is it appropriate? Too bright, too this or too that. We are also socialized with an underlying expectation of variety in outfits to be expected when entering the workforce. Obviously, this expectation comes with a cost: financial and environmental. So, I decided to try a little experiment and go against this injunction. Even if on Friday I was delighted to throw the whole outfit into the wash and happily slip on a new clean set, this week had its fair share of lessons I would like to pass on. My outfit for the week consisted of a pair of jeans, a black tank top, a plaid shirt. The only exception to the rule of wearing the same thing was, of course, underwear and socks (do I need to go through this? No? Good, keep reading.) My first (surprising) find concerned the “hygiene” aspect to wearing the same set of clothes repeatedly. It did not smell bad! I don’t sweat much so maybe someone with a sweatier nature would ha...

  C'est une vieille histoire... vous arrivez sur le campus pour la première fois et vous ne savez pas quoi apporter avec vous. N'inquiétez pas, nous avons une liste pratique des choses que vous ne devriez pas apporter avec vous lorsque vous venez sur le campus. Cela vous permettra d'économiser de l'espace dans vos valises et vos sacs, rendant ainsi votre vie sur le campus un peu plus facile. Bien que cette liste ne soit pas exhaustive, nous avons répertorié certaines des choses les plus importantes. Et bien sûr, si vous n'êtes pas sûr d'un élément particulier, n'hésitez pas à nous contacter pour plus d'informations. Imprimante Il peut être très tentant de penser que transporter cette grosse imprimante depuis la maison est une bonne idée... croyez-moi, ce n'est pas le cas. Il est très rare que vous ayez besoin d'imprimer l'un de vos travaux, la plupart sont soumis par voie électronique. Et si vous avez besoin d'imprimer quelque chose, il y...

It's a tale as old as time... you're coming to campus for the first time and you aren't sure what to bring with you. Well fear not, we have a handy dandy list of the things that you might not want to bring with you when you come to campus. This will save you a bunch of space in your suitcases and bags, making your life on campus a little bit easier. Although this is not as exhaustive list, we have some of the big things listed here. And of course if you aren't sure about a particular item, feel free to reach out to us for more info. Printer It can be very tempting to think that lugging that big printer  from home is a good idea... trust me it isn't. It's very rare that you will actually need to print any of your assignments, most are submitted electronically. And if you do need to print something, there are hundreds of printers on campus that you can use almost 24/7. Board games / video games I am not saying don't play board games and video games, what I am...

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...

In their 2008 progress report, the China Council for International Cooperation on Environmental Development defined the circular economy as " a generic term for the reducing, reusing and recycling activities conducted in the process of production, circulation, and consumption " (CCICED, 2008). In the 1990s, the term "Circular Economy" was popularized in China, stemming from rapid economic growth and subsequent strain on the country's natural resources. The principle of a circular economy is to capitalize on the recycling/reuse of raw materials while balancing natural resource use with economic growth. Although definitions of circular economy are relatively modern, the fundamentals of the circular economy have been around since before the industrial revolution.   Examples of a circular economy in Ottawa are second-hand stores such as Value Village. The role of thrift stores in promoting reuse is essential. Buying clothing second-hand is an efficient way to pr...