Brock University earned a Silver rating from its inaugural Sustainability Tracking, Assessment and Rating System (STARS), a comprehensive framework developed for colleges and universities to measure their sustainability performance.
The STARS framework was developed to engage and recognize higher education institutions in sustainability planning and development efforts to help progress towards long-term goals.
STARS is administered by the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE) with support and ongoing engagement from a wide variety of higher education stakeholders.
To view Brock’s full report, visit the STARS website.
Summary of Results
Score: 47.15
Rating: Silver
STARS Results
STARS Results – Published January 2021. The graph demonstrates Brock’s overall sustainability performance in the 5 categories of STARS – Academics, Engagement, Operations, Planning & Administration, and Innovation & Leadership. The red bar represents the points completed, and the grey bar represents points still available in the specific category.
Benefits to Brock
STARS is a holistic approach to measuring sustainability performance at higher education institutions. There are numerous benefits to reporting through STARS, below are 3 main highlights:
Creation of baseline measurements
Increase collaboration
Make real progress towards sustainability
Highlights from Sustainability Categories
- 15% of all courses include sustainability content, including undergraduate and graduate level.
- Master of Sustainability at the graduate level and Minor in Sustainability at the undergraduate level.
- Incentives for departments to develop sustainability courses and/or sustainability content into existing courses.
- The ESRC has 8 community partnerships, including the Brock Lincoln Living Lab, Niagara Adapts, Trail Assets and Tourism, and a new Living Planet @ Campus partnership with WWF.
- Student groups focused on sustainability, such as the Brock Eco Society and the Brock Vegan Society.
- BUSU’s collection of a “Green Levy” of $1 per credit from all undergraduate students for the purpose of improving environmental efficiency and reducing impact.
- Brock’s waste diversion rate of 73 per cent.
- GHG emissions inventory that includes Scope 1 and 2 emissions, with Scope 1 verified by a third party.
- On-site pulper in Market Hall, which helps Brock reduce organic food waste from 10 bags of garbage down to 1.
- The assessment of diversity and equity on campus, including the recently released Assessment of Climate for Learning, Living, and Working.
- Published sustainability related plans and reports, such as the ESRC’s Strategic Plan 2018, Energy Conservation and Demand Management Plan, and Brock University’s Canada Research Chairs Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Action Plan.
- Ability Empowerment Day that showcased snippets of life at the University for high school students experiencing disability to discover opportunities in post-secondary education.
- The advanced and modernized District Energy System (DES), which uses hot water instead of steam to heat many of the campus buildings, saving on fuel and reducing carbon emissions.
- The UNESCO Chair on Community Sustainability: from Local to Global at Brock, which as been held by Professor Liette Vasseur since 2014.
- On-campus community garden where Brock students, staff, and faculty can use several free garden plots to cultivate their green thumb.
- Designated as a Fair Trade Campus.
Learn More about STARS
Through STARS, we measure our current sustainability performance, create a baseline for continuous improvement, and engage students, staff, and faculty in the reporting process to continue to foster a culture of sustainability on campus. STARS reports and ratings are valid for 3 years from the date of publication.
Over 1,000 institutions have registered to use the STARS Reporting Tool, of which 672 have earned a STARS rating.
Keep a look out on this site, as we will be uploading summary documents for each STARS category!
In The News
January 28th, 2021: Brock University earns Silver STARS rating for sustainability performance
June 5th, 2020: Brock teams up to take strides in sustainability
