Western Sustainability
1151 Richmond Street N6A3K7 London, ON, Canada

Mustangs, we're running a giveaway this week for 2 x $20 Hospitality Services Gift Cards and 3 x Sustainability Prize packs with reusable totes, straws, cutlery and a mask! We want to know how you incorporate sustainable food into your life. To enter the contest, post one of the things listed below as a post or story on your social media, and make sure to tag us! A photo of a sustainable meal you've made... A photo or video showing how you purchase sustainable food A link to your favourite sustainable recipe This contest is open until Nov. 24 at 11:59pm. Enter as many times as you like through Facebook, Instagram and Twitter, and remember to tag us in every entry! Winners will be chosen through a randomized draw in excel and will be notified Nov. 25 through the social media channel where the entry was made.

Exciting news for Sustainability at Western University! https://news.westernu.ca//hrymak-sustainability-partnersh/

Calling all Mustangs! We need your help. Recycling from Western University residences is so contaminated that it forced London's Material Recovery Facility (MRF) to shut down on Monday afternoon. London has a two-stream recycling system, and that means that Paper and Containers must be kept separate in order to be recycled efficiently. We understand some cities have single-stream and changing recycling habits can be difficult! Take a look at this picture and let us know if y...ou think this recycling load was supposed to be 1) Paper or 2) Containers. Comment below to let us know your guess! Contest rules: - One guess per person - Bonus entry for commenting an idea to help improve recycling sorting in residences - All entries will be entered in a draw for a Sustainability Prize Pack including a reusable mask, reusable straws, tote bag and reusable cutlery - Contest closes Monday, November 23 at 11:59pm - Winner will be chosen by a random draw using excel and the winner will be contacted Nov. 24 through social media We are working on infrastructure improvements to make sorting easier such as improved signage, bin labels in residence rooms, clear differentiation between paper and containers recycling bins inside the recycling rooms and consistent messaging including a sorting guide in each residence room but we want to hear from you! What do you want us to do to help make sorting waste as easy as possible.

Buckle up, Mustangs, there's a lot going on this week! Our students and faculty are in the thick of midterms and assignments as we enter the final weeks of the ...Fall term. And that's not all! This week, we are celebrating International Week and Global Entrepreneurship Week with rich schedules of virtual events fittingly available for our Mustangs all around the world, more global than ever! International Week at Western https://www.internationalweek.uwo.ca Global Entrepreneurship Week at Western https://www.ivey.uwo.ca//global-entrepreneurship-week-2020/ Photo Credit: Andrew Campbell #westernu #westernuniversity Western International-Learning International and Exchange Student Centre at Western (IESC at Western) Propel - Western’s Entrepreneurship Centre Ivey Business School Entrepreneurship at Ivey #globalwesternu #takeflightwesternu #GEW2020 Western Student Experience

The Western Sustainability Leaders Program is about building a network of students interested in sustainability from all academic backgrounds! There are no set time commitments required, but many opportunities to get involved with sustainability on- and off-campus, while connecting with other students and sustainability professionals! To sign up and join the network send us your name, email, academic program and year of study! ... Email: [email protected] See more

Check out this awesome event tomorrow to learn how to cook a traditional meal hosted by Indigenous Student Association WesternU in collaboration with USC Food Support Services! Sign up using this form ASAP, and you'll receive details about where and when to pick-up the meal kit from campus. https://docs.google.com//1FAIpQLSdysJEC3DFJc5O3gf/viewform

A sustainable food system works with the environment! Tune in to this free webinar Nov. 19 at 7pm to learn from local agricultural leaders about the importance of biodiversity in agriculture to create strong and resilient landscapes, and how to choose plants that will support a wide variety of pollinators. Register here: https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/resilient-agriculture-growing-f

In line with Middlesex-London Health Unit, starting tomorrow the Western COVID-19 testing clinic will prioritize students, staff and faculty most in need of a COVID-19 test. Hours this week are 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. (Tuesday to Friday).

The first thing to consider for a sustainable purchase is to ask yourself whether you really need the item at all! Many purchases are made out of habit, tradition, or impulse and can be avoided altogether. Others can be replaced with reusable options. Other times you might consider quality, materials used, where it's made, and more. Buying sustainably can be complicated but we're breaking it down this month into digestible considerations. Let us know what factors are most important to you when choosing to make a sustainable purchase!

The Western Sustainability Leaders Program (WSLP) November monthly themed event is coming up Wed. Nov. 25 at 5:00 - 6:00pm - the Sustainable Food Webinar. Featuring guest speakers from Western University and the local community, we're very excited for this discussion which will address A Perspective on Indigenous Food Sovereignty, Eating Sustainably, Buying in Season & Reducing Food Waste - we hope you can make it! N'Amerind (London) Friendship Centre Middlesex-London Food Policy Council FRESH

This month the Western Sustainability Leaders Program (WSLP) will be looking at Sustainable Buying! You can still join the WSLP and receive recognition on the Co-Curricular Record! Just email [email protected] with your name, email, academic program and year of study to sign-up. WSLP participants join a network of students who care about sustainability from all years of study and a diverse range of academic programs. Together we can make a difference

First reduce, then reuse, then recycle! Here are some ideas for reducing waste at home. Which of these do you already do? What else are you doing to reduce waste? Let us know!

Mustangs, we need your help! Many residences are seeing cardboard being put down the garbage chutes, blocking them. This creates extra work for caretakers who have to unblock and clean the chutes at the end, and the cardboard ends up going to landfill. Cardboard is one of the easiest materials to recycle efficiently, and we know you appreciate the caretakers who are working so hard to keep residences safe and clean, so please, sort it right.

Cardboard is one of the most valuable recyclable materials! Please pitch in and sort it right. Break down all cardboard and place it in recycling stations appropriately. If you don't break down boxes, recycle bins overflow and cause other people to place cardboard in landfill!

Did you know Western has three streams for waste in dining halls? Organics Containers Landfill When items end up in the wrong bin it causes contamination, and all the waste goes to landfill! Please pitch in. Do your part, and sort it right!

Dear Western Students, A week ago I wrote asking you to rally, to double-down in following all the proper safety precautions to stop the spread of COVID-19. An...d I assure you, your efforts have not gone unnoticed. You’re making a difference. Thank you for what you’ve done and please keep up the good work: Avoid large gatherings Don’t attend or host house parties Keep your social bubbles smalllimit activities to your roommates and significant others Practice proper physical distancing Wear a mask indoorsand even outdoors when you’re close to each other Stay home if you’re sick I know this is tough. We’re all longing for life post-COVID. But, we must remain vigilant in order for this school year to be as successful as possible. This virus leaves no room for carelessness. For the sake of your grandparents, parents, your friends, the Western community and the broader London communityplease, continue to do the right thing. Be well and be safe. Alan Shepard President & Vice-Chancellor

Join us tomorrow at 3:30pm EST for our Waste at Western Webinar! All webinar participants will be entered in a draw for three $15 Amazon e-gift cards! Mary-Lee Townsend, Sustainability & Compliance Manager and Anne Zok, Nutrition Manager with Hospitality Services, will discuss the increase in disposable items due to Covid-19, and the impact on waste at Western. The speakers will share about how Western is mitigating the excess waste and what you can do to help on campus and at home!

Reducing waste and diverting the waste that we do produce takes all of us committing to Reduce Consumption and Sort It Right! Learn more about how we're handling excess waste on campus this year at our Waste at Western Webinar, the first in our Western Sustainability Leaders Program series! Happening Thurs. Sept. 24 at 3:30-4:30pm EST. Details on event page: https://www.facebook.com/events/323596542246164

Mustangs, please pitch in and Sort It Right! Because of Covid-19 we've had to use more disposable items on campus, and to deal with the increase in waste, we've created new sorting signs and new systems. We'll be talking all things waste in our first Sustainability Leaders event "Waste at Western" - happening this Thursday, Sept. 24 from 3:30-4:30pm EST on Zoom! Details in our event page. Hope to see you there! ... https://www.facebook.com/events/323596542246164 See more