What do Sustainability Ambassadors actually do? See some of the projects they’re working on, and find out how they use them to engage more people across campus in sustainability issues.
Please note: starting next academic year, the program is changing and as a result new projects will be introduced that are primarily conceptualized by community partners. Sustainability Ambassadors will work on these pre-conceived projects related to their cohort theme. More information on these projects will become available in summer 2022.
Current Projects
SDG Week
The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are a collection of 17 global goals set by the United Nations General Assembly and adopted by countries around the world. They are a universal call to action to end poverty, protect the planet, and ensure that all people enjoy peace and prosperity in a world where no one is left behind.
This year’s SDG Week will include a series of events and workshops to learn about the SDGs and gain skills to take into your own action. Over the course of the week, students will be able to engage with the SDGs through the lens of the 5 Ps (Peace, Prosperity, People, Planet and Partnerships).
Team
Sustainability Ambassadors team leads: Gideon Odionu, Kaitlyn Ho, Julie Hui, Sakshi Chandak and Lauren Moody
Project Team Mentors: Mannkiran Pandher and Emily White
Emerging collaborations: Global Lounge and UBC SDG Alliance
Sustainability Career Connections
Want to learn more about the sustainable careers available to you as well as work on the skills to get you there?
A careers night will be hosted for students to receive sustainability career information. This will give students the opportunity to discover how sustainability may be incorporated into their careers without being a strictly sustainability-related profession.
Team
Sustainability Ambassadors team leads: Sarisa Choy, Shruti Sridhar, Vanshika Jotsingha and Jade Yeung
Project Team Mentors: Manjot Sandhu and Anisha Sandhu
Emerging collaborations: EMBARK SFU, Kwantlen Student Association, Climate Hub and CityStudio
Sustainability Hackathon
The Hackathon created by the same Ambassadors team will include a challenge posed by the community partner, AMS Sustainability, that requires the attention of interdisciplinary research and creative new perspectives. This event will give students the opportunity to work collaboratively in consultation with stakeholders to come up with innovative ways to address a sustainability challenge.
Team
Sustainability Ambassadors team leads: Sarisa Choy, Shruti Sridhar, Vanshika Jotsingha and Jade Yeung
Project Team Mentors: Manjot Sandhu and Anisha Sandhu
Emerging collaborations: AMS Sustainability
Sport and Sustainability
A team of Sustainability Ambassadors is partnering with the Centre for Sport and Sustainability to create a resource guide and podcast on Athletes and Impact Making.
Team
Sustainability Ambassadors team leads: Sadhri Kumar and Vanessa Hsu
Project Team Mentor: Phoebe Autio
Emerging collaborations: Brian Wilson, Centre for Sport and Sustainability
Indigenous Perspectives, Social Justice Project
The Sustainability Ambassadors team is working to establish a collaborative group where students can come together to strategize ways to take action against social injustices and promote intersectional environmentalism.
Team
Sustainability Ambassadors team leads: Jacqueline Neufeld, Samuel Shin and Nika Martinussen
Project Team Mentor: Vicky Kim
Emerging collaborations: AMS Indigenous counselor and committee, Amplify Indigenous Voices initiative, and AMS Sustainability
Sustainability Storytelling/Research Symposium
Are you interested in learning, connecting and engaging with storytelling related to sustainability and research?
The Ambassadors will be hosting an online event where UBC students can connect with professionals and immerse in different stories around research in the sustainability field.
Team
Sustainability Ambassadors team leads: Jason Adle, Justin Kung, Joshua Jamora and Shane Hunt
Project Team Mentor: Laura Super and Tiffany Mak
Emerging collaborations: CALP
Circular Economy in Action
How can UBC further its sustainability goals through incorporating circular economies?
Sustainability Ambassadors are in the midst of planning an initiative meant to enhance other circular economy initiatives occurring on the campus. In the end, the UBC community and infrastructure may be able to adopt more sustainable practices through the theory of the circular economy.
Team
Sustainability Ambassadors team leads: Aidan Haigh, Ian Garvie, Kaitlyn Ho, Divija Madhani, Madeline Woodley and Isabella Montecalvo
Project Team Mentor: Natalie Hanna
Emerging collaborations: Campus and Community Planning, AMS Sustainability and CAP 2030
Rep/Consultant Positions
Campus and Community Planning
A group of Ambassadors are working closely with Campus and Community planning to develop online resources for students on campus during COVID-19.
Team
Group leads: Aidan Haigh, Joshua Jamora and Sarisa Choy
Project Team Mentors: Tawnee Milko, Campus and Community Planning
Representatives to the Global Lounge
Global Lounge
Sustainability Ambassadors are representatives to the Global Lounge, serving on the International Development and Sustainability committees. They are working throughout the year to create events promoting the goals of their committees and ensuring sustainability is present throughout the planning and programming of various events.
Team
Group leads: Isabella Montecalvo and Ian Garvie
Project Team Mentors: Eve Court, Program Advisor, Global Lounge
Climate Hub
The Ambassadors work with the Climate Hub’s team to seek out opportunities for collaboration and maintain open communication throughout the sustainability community.
Team
Group leads: Vanshika Jotsingha and Lauren Moody
Project Team Mentor: Liam Orme and Adriana Laurent, Climate Hub
Plant Forward Group
Sustainability Ambassadors are working closely with UBC Plant Forward to raise awareness and integrate food security aspects into the UBC Food Services operations.
Team
Group leads: Sadhri Kumar and Kaitlyn Ho
Project Team Mentors: Vicky Kim, Sarah Sara Kozicky and Leo Ernielly (UBC Wellbeing)
Representatives to the Student Sustainability Council
Sustainability Ambassadors serve on the SSC and provide consultation and feedback on the projects brought forward to the Council.
Team
Group leads: Divija Madhani and Jason Adle
Project Team Mentor: Kate Theriault
Kindness Group
Sustainability Ambassadors are working with the Kindness Group to support on-going projects and bring more kindness to the UBC campus.
Team
Group lead: Justin Kung
Project Team Mentor: Laura Super
Communications Group
Ambassadors from across the various major projects planned during the cohort come together to provide support in the promoting of their respective events.
Team
Group leads: Shruti Sridhar, Jade Yeung, Gideon Odionu, Julie Hui, Sakshi Chandak, Vanessa Hsu, Jacqueline Neufeld, Nika Martinussen, Sam Shin, Shane Hunt and Madeline Woodley
Project Team Mentors: Kshamta Hunter and Natalie Hawryshkewich
Want to learn more about any of the Sustainability Ambassadors’s projects and initiatives? Contact us at sustainability.ambassadors@ubc.ca.
Past Projects
2019/20
Sustainable Development Goals
Sustainability Ambassadors planned a week-long SDG event to discuss the framework through various lenses including Indigenous perspectives, science, city, and social entrepreneurship. Besides boosting awareness of the SDGs, the aim of our SDG Week is to facilitate increased collaboration among various organizations working on the goals.
Through active discussion and listening, the SDG Week encouraged groups to recognize that sustainability is wholly interconnected and that we are more connected to one another than we may think.
UBC Student Leadership Conference: Sustainability Workshop
The interconnectedness of sustainability challenges must be addressed to meet the urgent environmental, political, and economic challenges the world currently faces.
Presented as part of the 2020 UBC Student Leadership Conference, this workshop focused on social, economic, and environmental sustainability, encompassing multiple perspectives, to explore the connections between leadership and sustainability.
With a focus on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) – a collection of global goals set by the United Nations in Agenda 2030 – attendees gained the tools and knowledge to critically implement the SDGs as leaders in their communities, contributing to a more prosperous, safe, and sustainable planet.
Sustainability Fair
The Sustainability Fair aimed to inspire students, faculty, and staff to become involved with sustainability through engaging activities and informative displays.
The fair is an interdisciplinary and intersectional event showcasing businesses, organizations, and student groups that aim to create more equitable, livable, and inclusive communities. This year's goal was to educate students about some of the sustainability issues they were less familiar with, and to promote new or innovative methods of practicing sustainability.
Sustainability Hacks
Sustainability Hacks is a code-free hackathon that brings local sustainability-driven organizations, UBC faculty members, and ambitious students together for a weekend of synergy and innovation. Students worked collaboratively in teams of 3-6, in consultation with faculty members, to “hack” a solution to an issue that a community organization faces.
Sustainability Career Connections
Are you interested in pursuing a career in sustainability? Sustainability Career Connections connects students with alumni working in the industry. Hear about their path, and how they have transformed their education into a career.
Sport and Sustainability
A group of Sustainability Ambassadors are working closely with the Centre for Sport and Sustainability to developed a project with UBC Varsity teams and their climate impact by measuring their carbon footprint involving travel and gear.
2017/18
WASTED – A VIDEO SERIES
The 2017/18 Ambassadors worked with campus stakeholders and film students to develop 4 short films to integrate into student training, screen at events, and as a UBC student facilitation tool.
These films demonstrate:
- Where our energy comes from
- How much energy, water, and food are consumed and wasted daily
- Positive environmental impacts of small lifestyle changes
- Average carbon footprints and how to lower them
Wasted. A video series: Waste. [Youtube]
Wasted. A video series: Food. [Youtube]
Wasted. A video series: Water. [Youtube]
Wasted. A video series: Energy. [Youtube]