National Observer: U of T schools the world by cutting emissions in half
By Abdul Matin Sarfraz | News, Climate Solutions Reporting | March 27th 2024 Pioneering heat pump research by a University of Toronto professor in 1940 is now paving the way for a retrofit that will dramatically reduce emissions at the school’s historic downtown campus. Thanks, in part, to the groundbreaking technology discovered by Prof. Frank Hooper, the university plans to start overhauling heating and cooling systems at its 200-year-old St. George campus this summer. Called Project Leap, it is believed to be the largest sustainability effort in the higher education sector in Canada, said Ron Saporta, U of T’s chief operating officer of property services and sustainability. “We want to [...]
2024 OREP Annual Staff Recognition Awards Open for Nominations April 1 to May 10
The Vice-President Operations & Real Estate Partnerships (OREP) established the annual Staff Recognition Awards Program in 2015 to recognize staff who have made exceptional contributions to the success of their unit, the OREP portfolio and/or the University. The program is an opportunity to honour and thank staff for the valuable work performed throughout the year. The awards will be presented at the VPOREP Thank You BBQ on August 20 (save the date – details to come!) Two Award categories are open for nominations between Monday April 1 and Friday May 10, 2024: The OREP Impact Awards (Individual or Team) [...]
UofT News: Founded by sibling team, U of T startup partners with university to sell apparel
Clothing brand MOTUS, co-founded by two U of T students and their younger sister, is collaborating with the university on a capsule collection Along with younger sister and creative partner Calille, left, Malik and Sydnie Pottinger worked with U of T's Trademark Licensing Office to create a capsule collection for their clothing brand MOTUS (photo by Varenya Danthurthy) Read more about this exciting collaboration between the Pottingers and our Trademark Licensing Office here.
Celebrating 197 years: Four ways F&S preserves campus charm
From a 111-year-old organ to a thriving tree population, F&S preserves the unique charm of U of T's St. George campus. Here are four ways we do it.
OREP team members take home Excellence Through Innovation Awards
Established in 2005, the Excellence Through Innovation Award (ETIA) program recognizes exemplary administrative staff and librarians across our tri-campus community. The ETIA program is an opportunity to acknowledge and celebrate ‘above-and-beyond’ contributions towards the University’s mission as one of the world’s foremost research-intensive universities. Individual and team nominations were submitted by colleagues and evaluated based on specific contributions and achievements in transferability, quality impact, productivity, cost savings, transformative value, and equity, diversity & inclusion. This award serves as an inspiration for our community to implement similar initiatives in their own units or, more broadly, to make the University of Toronto a better place [...]
Annual Deferred Maintenance Report
The annual deferred maintenance report is now available. Over the last year, the deferred maintenance backlog climbed by 23% to $1.2B. The University is approaching a period of necessary renewals as many of our building systems approach their end of useful life. Read more
UofT News: ‘A win for students’: U of T acquires 20 per cent of privately owned CampusOne residence
The deal enables U of T to place students directly in CampusOne and offer them residence programming and supports. (photo by Lisa Logan Photography) Published: February 7, 2024 By Rahul Kalvapalle In a deal that immediately adds as many as 890 beds to the university’s student housing stock, the University of Toronto has purchased a 20 per cent stake in the privately owned CampusOne residence located adjacent to the St. George campus. Read more here.
Call for Nominations — 2024 Sustainable Action Awards
Nominations are now open for the tri-campus 2024 Sustainable Action Awards. The Sustainability Office is accepting nominations to recognize those who helped make U of T the most sustainable university in the world. Nominations are due February 23. Read more
U of T News: U of T to cut carbon emissions in half on St. George campus by 2027
Project Leap, a public-private project, is believed to be the largest sustainability effort in the higher education sector (photo by David Lee) Published: February 2, 2024 By Rahul Kalvapalle The University of Toronto is accelerating efforts to decarbonize its St. George campus through a massive, $138-million infrastructure project that will cut emissions in half within three years. Project Leap will begin phasing out natural gas in favour of electricity in the campus’s central steam plant and carry out deep energy retrofits to some of the most energy-intensive buildings. Read more here.
U of T constructing Canada’s tallest academic timber building
The University of Toronto has begun raising a new 14-storey mass timber building that will set a precedent for sustainable design.