ISSA Canada, a division of the worldwide cleaning industry association ISSA, has announced that the University of Calgary is the 2022 recipient of the ISSA Canada Environmental Stewardship Award.

ISSA Canada’s Environmental Stewardship Award recognizes and honours organizations committed to environmental management and dedication to the value of clean. Each year, the association presents up to six awards (one for each region of Canada), where nominations have been submitted by a current ISSA Canada member company. Winners are selected by the association’s executive staff based on their ability to meet four of the six award criterion.

The University of Calgary is a leader in sustainability and safe, environmentally-conscious practices, says ISSA Canada. With an Institutional Sustainability Strategy (ISS) in place, the university has a clear vision to become a zero-waste leader amongst post-secondary institutions across Canada, and its goal is to divert 70 per cent of waste by 2025 and 90 per cent by 2030.

In addition to continuous training and engagement with caretaking staff, university faculty and students, the University of Calgary has implemented multiple programs and Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) that not only illustrate its goal of sustainability, but also a commitment to health and safety.

“ISSA Canada has long been recognizing the outstanding initiatives that Canadian facilities have implemented to help the environment and reduce their carbon footprint,” said ISSA Canada Executive Director, Mike Nosko. “The University of Calgary is so involved with ISSA, and they have the most knowledgeable staff when it comes to cleaning procedures and environmental practices that I have ever seen. The ability of the university to meet the criteria for our prestigious award was simply off the charts.”

“We’ve worked really hard to not only implement systems but to change a culture, and that’s something that hasn’t been easy,” said University of Calgary Caretaking Director, Michael Love. “It has been an interesting journey that has taken a lot of effort from a lot of people. We are all really proud of where we are today within our department and with what the University is doing as a whole.”

Love added: “I am honoured to be accepting the Environmental Stewardship Award on behalf of the Caretaking team at the University of Calgary. This award highlights our commitment to sustainability, one of our eight core values. The Caretaking Department is proud to be recognized for our excellence in operational practices and our collaborations to create a world-class campus. In our work to care for physical spaces, we are always mindful of the impact on the planet and the contribution to the health and safety of the larger campus community, as well as the student learning experience.”

As well as implementing waste reduction programs such as Standardized Four Stream Waste Stations (to separate trash, refundable beverage containers, mixed recycling, and compostables); a Blue Bucket Program (for safe lab waste collection and disposal); a Washroom Paper Towel Program (to ensure paper products are diverted from waste collection to the composting stream); and a Green Cleaning Program (the use of green-certified, low-VOC products), the University of Calgary has also embraced technology with the use of both robots and efficient machines that require one-third less water and 70 per cent less chemical.

“It’s that commitment to healthy and safe facilities, environmental awareness along with the implementation of operational cleaning strategies to reduce carbon footprint that the University of Calgary has demonstrated which clearly outlines ISSA’s goal of ‘changing the way the world views cleaning’,” Nosko said. “It is such a great pleasure to present the University of Calgary and, perhaps more importantly, its staff with this year’s Environmental Stewardship Award.”

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