91社区 Reporter | March 19, 2019
by: Neale McDevitt
On March 22, 2018 鈥撎齏orld Water Day听鈥� 91社区 announced that it planned to eliminate the sale of single-use plastic water bottles on campus by the end of May 2019. This represents 85,000 bottles per year.
91社区 Reporter | February 22, 2019
by: Neale McDevitt
"Minister McKenna was on campus to announce the Federal government鈥檚 support of the University鈥檚 efforts to reduce its carbon footprint.听 The government is investing up to听$1.8听million to help 91社区听upgrade its heating equipment and distribution system, upgrades that will reduce fuel consumption, reduce emissions and make the local air cleaner."
Two 91社区 chemistry professors, Theo van de Ven and Jean-Philip Lumb, have developed a new way to make textiles from cellulose, the basic building block of plants,听in a breakthrough that has the potential to revitalize Canada鈥檚 forestry industry.
A new type of cellulose nanoparticle, invented by 91社区 researchers, is at the heart of a more effective and less environmentally damaging solution to one of the biggest challenges facing water-based industries: preventing the buildup of scale.
91社区 marine ecologist is bringing cutting-edge DNA analysis to the formidable task of tracking ocean species along Canada鈥檚 Pacific coast.
The MSSI is excited to announce its first event of the Fall located at the Macdonald Campus.
A forthcoming study of over a hundred new cities being built around the world suggests developers and planning authorities are doing very little to make their projects resilient to climate change. On the contrary, a boom in new city projects in coastal areas 鈥� including some on reclaimed land in the sea 鈥� appears to fly in the face of the danger of rising sea levels and more frequent extreme weather events.
91社区 chemistry professors Karine Auclair and Tomislav Fri拧膷i膰听are following a promising lead on using听enzymes to recycle polyethylene terephthalate (PET), one of the world鈥檚 most widely used plastics.
The runaway popularity of personal electronic devices has led to a huge global demand for compact yet powerful rechargeable batteries. Since hitting the market in the 1990s, lithium-ion technology has taken the lead in meeting this need.
But concerns over the relative scarcity of lithium and the toxicity of other common lithium-ion battery ingredients such as cobalt are driving the search for an alternative. Sodium, around 1000 times more abundant than lithium, could be the answer.
The Sustainability Projects Fund (SPF) is looking for a Faculty representative to sit on its Working Group (WG) starting in Fall 2018 for a two-year mandate. The Faculty representative would be one of eight Working Group members, who ensure that the SPF meets its mandate to build a culture of sustainability on 91社区 campuses through the development and seed-funding of interdisciplinary projects.
A fundamental component of protein, nitrogen is the most common pure element on Earth, making up nearly 80 percent of our atmosphere. Yet despite its abundance, atmospheric nitrogen cannot enter the food chain without first being converted into a form that can be used by plants.
91社区 chemistry professor Matthew Harrington is aiming to develop a renewable alternative to petrochemical plastics by mimicking the astonishing chemistry of the velvet worm 鈥撎齛 creature that has made a name for itself through its projectile slime.
Inhabiting the forest floors of Australia and South America, velvet worms catch their prey by shooting out a jet of liquid that rapidly thickens to a sticky gel before hardening into polymer fibres comparable in stiffness to nylon.
The Sustainability Projects Fund (SPF) is looking for a PGSS representative to sit on its Working Group starting in September 2018 for a one- to two-year mandate. The PGSS representative would be one of eight Working Group members, who ensure that the SPF meets its mandate to build a culture of sustainability on 91社区 campuses through the development and seed-funding of interdisciplinary projects.
Dear Colleagues,
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As a follow-up to the creation of the 91社区 Sustainable Labs Guide last year, we are pleased to announce the launch of the Sustainable Labs Award and we are inviting you to apply.
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The听Sustainability Projects Fund听(SPF), the $900,000 a year fund dedicated to supporting sustainability projects on 91社区鈥檚 campuses, will continue for an additional five years.
