The RRC Ice Rebels had a great time getting outside for the Jack Frost Challenge February 12-18. The challenge was to get outside and skate, cross-country ski, run, snowshoe, cycle and walk a total of 130km. We’re proud to announce that RRC’s very first Jack Frost Challenge team – the RRC Ice Rebels – crushed that goal early in the week and went on to travel a combined total of 247 KMs over the week!! Out of the 114 teams registered across Manitoba, we finished in 19^th place, which we think is pretty amazing for our first try!

Here are our reflections on the week:

Dave at Global Fat Bike Day in 2016

Dave:
I enjoyed being a part of the Jack Frost Challenge!  It was a fun way to meet likeminded people.  Also, through social media, it helped motivate friends and family to get out and get active.

Chris:
The weather really presented a challenge for skiing [that] week.  With temperatures well above normal we lost significant amounts of snow during the week.  Needless to say this had an extremely detrimental effect on the trail conditions within the Winnipeg region.  Waxing for classic skiing when the weather is warm and the trails are icy and deteriorating is very difficult.  Each day brought slightly different conditions and different challenges.  On Saturday we switched over to skate skiing to make the best use of the remaining snow.  Hats off to the groomer at Windsor Park Nordic Centre for keeping the trails in good condition despite the soaring temperatures.

In previous years at the end of February I have gone down to Hayward, Wisconsin to compete in the American Birkebeiner 50 km ski race.  The “Birkie” is the largest ski race in North America with an attendance of roughly 10,000 skiers.  This year I am not attending…which is fortunate for me, but not for the organizers, since they are being forced to very likely cancel this year’s race at the last minute due to these unseasonably warm temperatures.  In fact, they received 25 mm of rain yesterday, which essentially destroyed the remainder of the 50 km of trail they have been trying so hard to protect these past few weeks.  Very sad.  Climate change and global warming are having a significant negative effect on the sport of cross country skiing and other winter sports throughout the world.  Go Green…so we can keep our winter wonderlands. Read More →

The groundhogs have predicted (at least) 6 more weeks of winter, but we’re Manitobans so instead of retreating to our warm beds, we will embrace winter while it lasts!

Bougeons en Hiver: The Jack Frost Challenge is a weeklong challenge every February where people across Manitoba sign up to skate, cross-country ski, run, snowshoe, cycle and walk a total of 130km, either as a team or (for the hardcore) as an individual.

This year, we have signed up a team – the RRC Ice Rebels – and we’re ready to take on winter from February 12-18. Below, meet our teammates and find out how we plan to meet this challenge head on! Follow us on social media (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram) for updates throughout the week. Read More →

Sustainability is about meeting the needs of the present without compromising the needs of future generations to meet their own needs. One of the three pillars of sustainability, social sustainability, reminds us to ensure that through this process everyone’s needs are met. During the holiday season, it’s a good time to reflect on how we are working to meet this end, and consider what else we can do to help. Read More →

The dust has settled from RRC Waste Reduction Week which was held October 24-28 and once again, we had a very successful event thanks to all of you! Below is a summary of the week.

Special Waste Depots/E-Waste Drive

We were very excited to partner with MMSM and Winnipeg Harvest this year as part of their Bag it Forward program. Over the week, we collected 286 plastic bags which will be used to deliver Winnipeg Harvest’s emergency food kits. Due to a great deal of interest, we are working on creating a permanent collection for the Bag it Forward program at RRC.

In the meantime, drop off gently-used plastic bags at our office (C519, NDC) from now until December 1. We will drop off all the collected bags to Winnipeg Harvest on December 2. If you have plastic bags but can’t make it to our office, contact Whitney to arrange something.

We also collected 180 used writing instruments (pens, markers, highlighters, and mechanical pencils) which will be dropped off at Staples for recycling as part of their partnership with Terracycle. Many of you expressed an interest in making this a permanent program. We heard you loud and clear and are working on it. Stay tuned!

Finally, about 2,262 kg of e-waste was collected for recycling, including 200 kg of used batteries. Many of your asked what happens to these items. Read More →

Piles of electronic waste ready to be picked up for recycling.

Did you know that at the Brady Road Landfill, methane gas is captured and burned thereby reducing annual greenhouse gas emissions by the equivalent of taking 21,700 passenger vehicles off the road?

Did you know that Winnipeg Harvest uses approximately 1 million plastic bags to deliver emergency food kits each year?

Did you know that you can bring used writing instruments to Staples locations to be recycled as part of their partnership with Terracycle?

October 24-28, 2016 is RRC Waste Reduction Week and we have several activities planned which will give you opportunities to learn more, be inspired, and take action (including a draw for a $500 gift certificate to a local bike shop)! Read More →

Sara and Whitney — waiting to catch the LRT to the airport. For all you baseball fans, that’s Camden Yards in the background.

Last week, Sara and Whitney (RRC’s Sustainability Office) left family and pumpkin pie meals at home and spent four days in Charm City to attend North America’s largest sustainability conference for higher education. More than 1800 of our post-secondary counterparts, faculty, students, administrators (and even a few College Presidents) descended onto Baltimore to gain lessons and tools, be inspired to advance sustainability initiatives at their own institutions, and form important relationships in a rapidly growing post-secondary sustainability network. Read More →

Fair Trade Campus Week is September 26-30

Fair Trade Week will soon be upon us, and there are a lot of fun activities planned (did someone say “free ice cream”?) to help raise awareness about Fair Trade, to learn about Fair Trade options on campus, and to provide updates on our efforts to become Manitoba’s first Fair Trade Campus.

When you purchase a Fair Trade product, you are ensuring that farmers and workers in developing countries that helped bring that product to market are receiving adequate compensation for their hard work, that they have safe working conditions, and that environmental standards were met in its production.

Fair trade is a true embodiment of sustainability – working to address economic, social and environmental issues of our globalized economy.  This is why Red River College is working to become the first Fair Trade Campus in Manitoba. Some of our efforts can be readily seen when you enjoy De Luca’s Fair Trade coffee from Food Service locations; purchase a Dairy Milk Fair Trade chocolate bar from the Ox, the Mercantile or a vending machine; or participate in Fair Trade Campus Week. Read More →

September is an exciting time to be at Red River College with a whole new term of classes starting, the campuses are abuzz.

For those new to Red River College, or even those returning, here are some tips on how to live sustainability on campus:

Follow us on Social Media

An easy way to find out what is going on with Sustainability at Red River College is to follow us on one (or more) of our social media channels. You can find us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. You can also subscribe to our blog to get informed of all the latest sustainability news.

RRC Bijour Urban Honey.

RRC Farmers Market 

On Friday, September 9, Red River College is hosting its first ever farmers market. In addition to some great local vendors, we will be selling RRC’s very own Bijou Urban Honey made this summer on the PGI 4^th floor patio in partnership with Beeproject Apiaries. The market is open to everyone and will run from 11AM to 2PM on the plaza level between DEF buildings at Notre Dame Campus.

Waste and Recycling

You may have noticed that there are no garbage or recycling bins in classrooms on campus. Hall It! encourages everyone to be responsible for their own waste by taking it to the halls for disposal. This program helps keep classrooms clean, reduces staff time needed to clean these rooms, and makes it easier for you to dispose of your waste properly with helpful signage and bins placed in the hallways.

Our hallway Pitch In program consists of three bins: two for recycling (paper and containers) and one for garbage. Large signs above many of these trios will help you figure out where to put something if you’re not sure. Eliminating stand-alone garbage bins makes recycling accessible for you, so you don’t have to worry about carrying your recyclables around all day looking for the right bin.  Read More →

Label prototype of “Bijou Urban Honey”. Get yours at the market!

The idea to hold a Farmers Market has been buzzing in our minds since Chris and Lindsay from Bee Project Apiaries installed three hives on our Paterson GlobalFoods Institute in early July. They told us that at the end of the season we could expect to receive about 75 kilograms of honey.

“75 kilos of honey?!” we thought to ourselves. “What are we going to do with all of that golden goodness?” And just like that, our Farmers Market idea was born.

Students, staff and members of the community are invited to attend the Farmers Market on Friday, September 9th from 11-2pm on the Plaza level in between buildings DEF.

Our local line-up is growing everyday and includes vendors such as:

• Hearts & Roots
• Bramans Greens
• De Luca’s
• Nosh on This – gluten-free baked goods
• Red River College Bijou Urban Honey

We hope to see you there!

Hi, my name is Whitney Crooks and I am thrilled to be Red River College’s new Sustainability Coordinator. I’m really looking forward to getting to know and working with all of you. I bring with me a fair amount of experience and a lot of enthusiasm! Here is a little bit about me and how I came to be here.

Environmentalism has always been a part of me and my life, however until about 10 years ago, I had no idea that you could turn that passion into a career! In University, I originally studied sciences, earning a BSc in Mathematics and Physics and an MSc in Applied Meteorology and Climatology.

I enjoyed my studies, but quickly learned that I didn’t want to be a meteorologist. I began looking into my options and found the Masters in Environmental Studies program at York University. In this program, I found my place and I earned my MES with a focus on community engagement around environmental issues.

Read More →