A group of students at the École de technologie supérieure (ÉTS) decided to “go green” and have established the Association du bâtiment durable de l’École de technologie supérieure (ABDÉTS). The future engineers have thus created an effective platform for heightening awareness among professionals in the field, the university community and the general public of the advantages of sustainable construction. In order to closely monitor the latest developments in the field, the association’s 70 members have the opportunity to attend lectures, visit environmental projects and participate in workshops hosted by professionals from the milieu. Building ecologically has now become their chief concern, be it in the choice of alternative professional techniques or the use of advanced materials. Today, these socially-committed students even plan to take their mission one step further by establishing and supervising other student groups in various universities. This remarkable initiative has put ÉTS in the vanguard of the building sector.
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To request that the student community apply the principle of sustainable development in their everyday lives was the motto chosen by UniVERTcité, a student environmental committee at the Université de Montréal. Why you may ask? Because last year, in the Jean-Brillant Pavilion cafeteria, 252,123 disposable items including 55,904 coffee cups and 135,605 plates were thrown away. And once buried, the 11 tons of waste this represents produces methane gas, one of the main contributors to the greenhouse effect. To curb this disturbing phenomenon, the members of UniVERTcité, all ardent defenders of nature, set up the Boire et s’alimenter écologiquement project which consists in reducing at the source the number of disposable cups and plates used on campus by replacing them with washable and reusable items. Thanks to this avant-garde initiative, the students have heightened awareness of the ecological issue and provided an incentive for developing new eating habits. A highly ingenious environmental action that has contributed to the greater well-being of the planet.
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To enable citizens living in the same neighbourhood to exchange objects instead of buying new ones was the challenge taken up by Maude Léonard and Véronique Castonguay, two doctorate students in community psychology at the Université du Québec à Montréal (UQAM). Their objective: to curb overconsumption, a common problem in North American society. The Troc-tes-Trucs system was specially designed for families with children under the age of 12. Every two months, a day is set aside for exchanging articles as well as establishing ties with other people in the neighbourhood. Troc-tes-Trucs is also an opportunity for heightening awareness in the community of the benefits of a healthier lifestyle and the importance of protecting the environment. From the very beginning, this surprising concept has enjoyed a huge success: the first year, the two students accompanied by 25 volunteers brought together 35 families. And just recently, the project received a $17,500 grant from Forum jeunesse of the Island of Montréal which, among other things, will help finance the renting of office space and the use of a truck to pick up objects from participants’ homes. A bright future is undoubtedly in store for this both original and highly instructive project!
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