Operations

Seneca’s Office of Sustainability collaborates with departments across Seneca Polytechnic to work towards the goals outlined in the Sustainability Plan and to integrate sustainability into all processes and projects. For each area of environmental sustainability (e.g., energy and emissions, waste, water and land), we conduct audits to gain insights on our environmental performance, which is improved through subsequent action plans. Our performance is measured within our operational categories (e.g., food services, transportation and procurement) to guide efforts to meet our sustainability objectives. Each project embeds considerations for each of the categories of sustainability and ensures we address all three pillars of sustainable program framework; infrastructure and design, management and education.

Our operation goals align with the following SDGs:

• update the Procurement Policy to embed sustainability
• create a greenhouse gas reduction plan
• increase the amount of locally and sustainably sourced food served on campus
• update and implement a waste reduction and minimization plan
• establish an integrated planning process for new and existing spaces and facility renewals
• grow the sustainable commuting program

Eleven per cent of CITE is powered by renewable energy from the 438 solar panels on the roof of the building. 

As part of the Greenhouse Gas Campus Retrofits Program, Seneca received $4.7 million from the Government of Ontario’s Innovation Grant Fund for a geothermal retrofit at King Campus. The new heating and cooling system includes about 40,000 linear feet of piping installed 400 feet below the parking lot. It reduces greenhouse gas emissions at Garriock Hall by more than 50 per cent.

Seneca’s inter-campus shuttle provides students and employees free, safe, reliable and efficient transportation services to reduce the number of single-occupant vehicle trips between campuses. Seneca has several resources to support sustainable transportation options, such as the Seneca rideshare program, electric vehicle chargers and bike-fixing station and racks.

Seneca Polytechnic is developing standards for integrated landscape design and maintenance informed by the Sustainability Tracking Assessment and Rating System (STARS), Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) credit requirements, and ecological best practices.

Seneca Polytechnic’s campuses are greener than ever, thanks to a City of Toronto grant that helped plant more than 2,600 trees and shrubs. The three-year initiative builds on a multi-year renovation at the Newnham and Seneca@York campuses which has created eco-friendly areas that not only mitigate climate change but also support biodiversity.

Seneca is one of five postsecondary institutions in Ontario selected by WWF-Canada to receive $5,000 for its new Seed Orchard project. Seeds harvested from hundreds of native plants are offered to Seneca students and employees to help create and restore wildlife habitats in their own neighbourhoods. Seneca has continued to harvest seeds from the orchard and has shared more than 100 seed packages with our community each spring since 2022.  

Seneca’s waste reduction and recycling plan highlights high-level objectives within our waste principles of sustainability: waste reduction, increased capacity for recycling and support for circular and sharing economies. This is supplemented with annual action plans, completed every year, kicked off by our annual waste audit. Projected initiatives fall within the sustainable programs' framework, which applies to all of Seneca’s principles of sustainability: infrastructure and design, management, engagement and education.

Learn more about the waste program.

Seneca’s Office of Sustainability has developed a food and beverage inventory to determine the average percent of purchases that are local and/or sustainable. From this, we developed a Sustainable Food Service annual action plan, to increase local and sustainably sourced food offerings. Since the establishment of this plan, we have implemented the Seneca Farm, Seneca Honey, Seneca Soup Program and sustainably sourced seafood.

Applied Research and the Seneca Student Federation have collaboratively spearheaded numerous urban agricultural initiatives, contributing to the advancement of the Urban Agriculture Enterprise Support Program (UAESP). These ventures not only fostered the growth of the program but also provided students with hands-on experiences. One notable project involved the creation of a garden atop Newnham’s parking structure. 

In addition to our food offerings, Seneca’s dining services also focuses on the sustainability of our dining program as a whole. This includes things like waste reduction projects, and engagement efforts to encourage our community to make healthy choices for them and the planet.