Campus Initiatives

Help us create a more sustainable campus and community. Laurier offers many opportunities for students, staff, faculty and community members to get involved in creating a campus and community that is sustainably-minded.

Waste Reduction and Diversion

To align with Goal #5 of our Action Plan, Laurier offers several different waste reduction and diversion programs, including: organics, comingled recycling, e-waste, batteries, fluorescents and materials. Key programs include:

• 40 cent reusable mug discount at any vendor on the Waterloo campus.
• Friendlier resuable container program provides durable, reusable containers from participating campus locations which can be returned to designated bins for a full deposit refund.
• Water-fill stations located across campus with digital counters that track the number of plastic bottles each location has diverted.
• Freestore available to the Laurier community to pickup or donate a wide range of items including household decor, kitchenware, office supplies, and small appliances at no charge. 
• Move Out Program provides students moving out of residence at the end of the school year an avenue to responsibly divert their items from landfill by circulating them back into the local community. 

Alternative Transportation

To align with Goal #3 of our Action Plan, a variety of alternative transportation options are offered by Laurier and the Region of Waterloo to reduce the environmental impacts of commuting. Benefits available include:

• Neuron Mobility e-scooters and e-bikes are available on the Waterloo campus (program on pause until spring 2024 for safety purposes).
• Grand River Transit and Brantford Transit passes.
• Carshare membership with Communauto.
• Bike racks and secure bike storage.
• Electric vehicle (EV) charging stations.

Community Gardens

Laurier has a large community garden at the Northdale campus in Waterloo, located just north of the main campus. The garden hosts numerous community partners such as Young City Growers, KW Urban Harvester, the Indigenous Student Centre, Patchwork Community Gardens and more.

Pollinator Friendly

The Sustainability Office has been in partnership with other departments, clubs and offices at the Waterloo campus to raise awareness of the issue of pollinator decline. In 2019, Laurier recieved it's Bee Campus designation from Bee City Canada for our commitment to supporting pollinator habitats to increase biodiversity and start conversations with staff, faculty, and students. To align with Goal #7 of our Sustainability Action Plan, Laurier has installed pollinator gardens and a pollinator spiral on the Waterloo campus to support wild pollinating species (such as native bees and butterflies). We're taking steps to make the Waterloo campus friendlier to bees, butterflies, moths, wasps, hummingbirds, and other native pollinators. The Sustainability Office is actively pursuing Bee Campus designation at the Brantford campus which currently uses apiaries on top of One Market to educate the community on the importance of pollinators. 

Student, Staff, and Faculty Plots

Beginning in spring 2023, students, staff, and faculty will have the opportunity to apply for one of ten plots availble to grow their own food and plants. We strive to provide opportunities for the Laurier community to get involved in sustainability directly by cultivating the land in our community garden at Northdale to grow hyperlocal produce.

Fair Trade Campus

As a Fair Trade designated campus, Laurier actively supports fairer conditions and better prices for people in the Global South who grow and make products – whether it is coffee, cocoa or cotton t-shirts. Being a Fair Trade campus supports the Laurier community in making choices that align with our personal values, and have a positive social and environmental impact.