Selkirk College & the Sustainable Development Goals

End poverty in all its forms everywhere.

Selkirk Highlight:

Rural Homelessness and COVID-19

 Selkirk Innovates  and the Selkirk College  Nursing Program  have collaborated on  a project  with the aim to improve the well-being of people experiencing homelessness in West Kootenay communities during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Additional contributions:

•  Scholarships and bursaries 
•  Tuition waiver program for former youth in care  

End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture.

Selkirk Highlight:

Meal Plans for Students

Campus recreation is offering free  meal plans  to support students who are living on a budget and want to eat healthy. These plans include three recipes and a grocery shopping list with affordable ingredients.

Additional contributions:

• Orchard near the  Mir Centre for Peace  is maintained and fruit is picked and juiced annually
•  Rural Pre-Medicine  students host an annual food bank fundraiser
• Student-hosted  Scholar's Dining Room 

Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages.

Selkirk Highlight:

Healthy Living

The Campus Life & Recreation team has a new  healthy living resource  that gives students support in eating well and staying active while they’re busy studying. The resource includes meal and workout plans, and ways to create healthy habits that contribute to a positive outlook on life.

Additional contributions:

•  Health benefits plan for students 
•  Free counseling for students 
•  Options for Sexual Health Clinic 
• Flu vaccination clinic
•  Programs and courses within the field of healthcare 
•  Recreation services on campuses 
•  Healthy Campus program 
• Signatory of the  Okanagan Charter 
• Health and Wellness is a fundamental commitment within  Selkirk's strategic plan 

Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all.

Selkirk Highlight:

Building Remarkable Futures. Strategic Plan 2019-2024

Selkirk College is committed to empowering confident and imaginative learners through quality post-secondary in the West Kootenay and Boundary region. To achieve this, the College focuses on five priority areas: Learner Success, Excellence in Education, Community Development, Healthy Workplace, and Modernization of Facilities, Technology and Operations. Read the full  Strategic Plan  to learn more.

Additional contributions:

• Supports students with a diverse range of abilities
• Entrance requirements can be achieved through free public education or through  academic upgrading 
• Offers services to students including access to computers, an email account, a library, a searchable database with research papers, free wifi, clean water from every tap, and clean gendered, gender-neutral and wheelchair accessible washrooms
• S cholarships and bursaries  
•  Community Education and Workplace Training 

Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls.

Selkirk Highlight:

Connecting Women in Industry and Trades

Once a month, all women in Selkirk's Trades Programs are invited to meet to share experiences, network, and receive mentorship, support, and advice for challenges they may face in the industry. A Trades instructor and a counselor are present at these  monthly events .

Additional contributions:

•  Trades Discovery Program for Women 
•  Policy #6040:  Equity, Diversity, and Inclusivity strives to encourage individuals to act in support of equity
•  Policy #6030:  Sexual Violence Prevention and Response is in accordance with the provincial government’s Bill 23, Sexual Violence and Misconduct Policy Act
•  Options for Sexual Health Clinic 

Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all.

Selkirk Highlight:

Water Bottle Filling Stations

In an effort to reduce single-use plastics on campus, water bottle filling stations have been installed across all Selkirk campuses. Many of these stations have metres that show how many plastic bottles are saved by filling up with reusable bottles. Aside from these stations providing free clean water, they serve as a tool to remind students and staff that there are alternatives to using single-use plastics.

Additional contributions:

•  Efforts to reduce impacts on the Columbia River 
• Safe and clean water from every tap on campus
• Courses that teach about freshwater resource management, and protection and restoration of freshwater ecosystems

Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all.

Selkirk Highlight:

Castlegar Campus Solar Projects

Selkirk's Castlegar Campus features two solar panel arrays.  The library array , installed in 2019, includes 275 panels and is designed to produce 112,000 kilowatt-hours of electricity per year.  The Mir Centre array  was installed in 2020. It includes 46 panels and is designed to produce 21,000 to 26,000 kilowatt-hours annually. These projects are part of Selkirk's overall sustainability initiatives.

Additional contributions:

• Annual  Carbon Neutral Action Reporting  shows general downward trends in emissions
•  Policy #4300:  Environmental Sustainability
•  Electrical Apprenticeship  covers renewable energy themes

Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all.

Selkirk Highlight:

Fair Trade Campus

Selkirk College has been a designated  Fair Trade Campus  since 2013 and was the first community college in Canada to receive the designation. The Fair Trade Campus designation means Selkirk is committed to nurturing a campus environment that supports fair working conditions for people across the globe. The College is also committed to purchasing and promoting Fair Trade products. 

Additional contributions:

• Diversity & Inclusion is a fundamental commitment within  Selkirk's strategic plan 
• Selkirk College is committed to providing a stimulating, rewarding and supportive work environment so that we can continue to inspire life-long learning through education and training
• Selkirk provides work opportunities for students in the form of work-study and internship positions
•  Hospitality and Tourism programs 
•  Job boards for students and alumni 
•  Resume and cover letter writing assistance for students 

Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization and foster innovation.

Selkirk Highlight:

Selkirk Innovates

Innovation is woven through the fabric of every department, program and initiative at Selkirk College. The researchers, faculty and students at  Selkirk Innovates  are driven by a collaborative energy to solve problems and make life better. From rural homelessness and economic development, to forest technology practices and manufacturing solutions, we're here to help you innovate.

The opportunities and challenges our rural communities face are unique. Selkirk Innovates solves real-world challenges for the communities, industries and businesses we serve by bringing together highly-specialized expertise, cutting-edge technology, research infrastructure assets and enthusiastic students.

Additional contributions:

• Over 90% of faculty members involved in research are engaged in sustainability-related research
• Selkirk College is moving up the national research rankings!
• Solar panel installation on Castlegar Campus library roof and near the Mir Centre for Peace
• Integrating student innovation into everything we do through  work integrated learning  (WIL) and experiential community-based learning opportunities
• Innovation is a fundamental commitment within  Selkirk's strategic plan 

Reduce inequality within and among countries.

Selkirk Highlight:

Indigenization Plan

The Indigenization Plan 2019-2024 supports truth, reconciliation, Indigenization and decolonization at Selkirk College by providing a framework to enable a stronger future for all learners and staff.

Additional contributions:

• Accessibility Services helps students with documented disabilities find the supports they need to reach their educational goals.
•  Indigenous Services  provides support for all prospective and current Indigenous students
•  Policy 6010:  Human Rights, Harassment, & Discrimination
•  Policy 3400:  Student Code of Conduct – Rights and Responsibilities
•  Policy 6040:  Equity, Diversity and Inclusivity
•  Policy 8645:  Exemption from International Fees - students under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act are exempt from international fees

Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable.

Selkirk Highlight:

Identifying Cycling Routes to Selkirk College

Identifying Cycling Routes to Selkirk College is a mapping project created in 2019 by Caitlyn Duncanson, an Integrated Environmental Planning student. The intention of this project is to communicate the distance, elevation gain, and difficulty of cycling routes to Selkirk College. The map is also useful to promote more sustainable commuting options to those who are regular drivers.

Additional contributions:

•  Carpool encouragement program 
• Selkirk supports a diverse demographic of learners
•  Resources, support, and information  for survivors of sexual violence
•  Anti-Idling Procedure s

Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns.

Selkirk Highlight:

Waste Diversion

Selkirk College is committed to reducing waste and diverting materials from the landfill. Recycling units can be found across all Selkirk campuses. The units accept recycling, refundables, and garbage in separate streams. The Castlegar Campus has a compost program where students and staff can deposit compostable items in bins around campus.

Additional contributions:

• Programs to reduce use of single use items
•  Paper Usage Procedures 
• Sustainability reporting tracks waste diversion
•  Bookstores  support  B corp  and  Fair Trade  companies and continue to expand products available
•  Textbook buyback program 

Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts.

Selkirk Highlight:

Efforts to Reduce Greenhouse Gas Emissions

Environmental Sustainability is a fundamental commitment in  Selkirk's strategic plan  and reducing greenhouse gas emissions is a significant step towards this commitment. Since 2009, Selkirk has been  tracking carbon emissions  which is showing a general downward trend.

Additional contributions:

• Sustainability reporting through the  Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE) 
• Signed the  Global Climate Letter for Universities and Colleges 
• Rural Development Institute  initiatives on climate adaptation 
•  Electric vehicle was added to campus fleet 

Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development.

Selkirk Highlight:

Bioswales on Castlegar Campus

In 2017, bioswales were constructed in the main parking lot of the Castlegar Campus. The purpose of the bioswales is to capture stormwater runoff and prevent sediment and chemicals from entering the Columbia River. Local engineering and landscaping companies were hired to design and construct the project, and Selkirk's Environment and Geomatics students were enlisted to help with planting native species in the garden beds. The project has so far been successful at limiting parking lot runoff from entering the watershed.

Additional contributions:

• Marine and freshwater eutrophication, ocean acidification, and plastic debris density are addressed in a number of courses
• Programs within the School of Environment and Geomatics teach students about ecosystem-based approaches to managing freshwater ecosystems and discuss fish stocks and overfishing

Protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, and halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss.

Selkirk Highlight:

School of Environment and Geomatics

The  School of Environment and Geomatics  (SEG) features nationally-accredited environmental science programs.  Forest Technology ,  Geographic Information Systems ,  Integrated Environmental Planning , and  Recreation Fish and Wildlife  are the four programs within SEG. These programs give students first-hand experience with field labs and offer locally relevant lecture material. Students learn about problems facing terrestrial ecosystems and are given tools to understand and mitigate these problems when they enter the workforce.

Additional contributions:

• Castlegar Campus has a sizeable forest cover area that includes a woodlot, a riparian area, an orchard, and ecological restoration areas.
• Courses that teach students about the Canadian  Species at Risk Act (SARA) , the  ICUN Red List 
• Selkirk helps connect students to employers in the environmental field
• Ecologically-informed campus land management: invasive species management, native plants used in landscaping, no pesticides or herbicides used

Promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels.

Selkirk Highlight:

Mir Centre for Peace

The  Mir Centre for Peace  builds cultures of peace through learning and dialogue. Lecture series, trainings, workshops, films, research, and collaborations with community organizations help advance peace and justice both locally and in the wider world. The Mir Center for Peace is located on the Castlegar Campus and is housed in a restored early 20th century Doukhobor communal dwelling.

Additional contributions:

•  Peace and Justice Studies Diploma  
•  Support for LGBTQ2SIA+ students  
• Reconciliation is a fundamental commitment within  Selkirk's strategic plan 
• In 2020 Selkirk hosted an  anti-racism event 
• Budgets and financial reports are transparent and available for public access
• Selkirk regularly asks students for their feedback on the quality of instruction
• Promotes public access to information and creates services for students to access information
•  Policy 6030 : Sexual Violence Prevention and Response
•  Policy 6010 : Human Rights, Harassment, & Discrimination

Strengthen the means of implementation and revitalize the global partnership for sustainable development.

Selkirk Highlight:

Selkirk College Signed the SDG Accord

Selkirk College has solidified its commitment to working towards the SDGs by signing the  SDG Accord , the university and college sector's collective response to the Sustainable Development Goals. The Accord is designed to bring awareness to the SDGs, track progress, and allow institutions to commit to working towards the SDGs. Selkirk looks forward to collaborating with other institutions on efforts to work towards a more sustainable future.

Additional contributions:

• Selkirk is a member of the  Consortium for North American Higher Education Collaboration (CONAHEC)  which supports students who study abroad
•  Transfer agreements in place for international schools 
• Research and publications by Selkirk Innovates