Earth Day 2022: How Trent in Investing in our Planet
Trent has been an environmental leader for nearly 60 years; here are the highlights of the contributions our community has made over the past year
Earth Day is a call to action for all of us to do more to protect our planet – it’s a call to action that also echoes through the lecture halls and labs every day at Trent University.
From new partnerships, groundbreaking research discoveries and several on-campus initiatives, here are a few of the ways Trent’s faculty, staff, and students are working to deliver innovative solutions to #InvestInOurPlanet.
Investing in a healthy foundation
Conserving our planet for future generations requires action from the ground up – quite literally! From digging deeper into the topic of soil health to the commercializing of a new biofertilizer that encourages plant growth in drought conditions, Trent research is cultivating a greener tomorrow.
A green tomorrow is only possible if we also preserve our water resources. Trent’s leading researchers in freshwater ecosystems continue to show leadership in this field. Dean of Science, Dr. Holger Hintelmann published the results of a 20-year study on the impact of mercury pollution on lakes and watersheds. In just the past year, Dr. Maggie Xenopoulos was appointed a Tier 1 Canada Research Chair of Global Change of Freshwater Ecosystems, and joined the first-of-its-kind coordinated winter research effort as a lead scientist helping collect and analyze ice and water samples from all five of the Great Lakes.
Feeding our need for sustainable food resources
Through Trent’s various on-campus food production facilities, such as the Trent Vegetable Garden, Market Garden, Apiary, and Experimental Farm, students gain hands-on experience in ensuring food security well into the future. Work continues on preparing the new location of Trent’s Experimental Farm, with more opportunities for learning on the land “sprouting” this spring. Trent researchers also shared their knowledge through the award-winning FarmFood360° online platform, which offers Canadians a behind-the-scenes look at how and where their food is produced. And in his Masters in Sustainability Studies thesis, Samuel Ofori Duah tackles how combatting food waste can be critical to ensuring food security– research that will make an impact here in Canada as well as in his home country of Ghana.
Investing in sustainable communities
Trent students are at the forefront of understanding how to live more sustainably through the social facets of life:
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- Rosalyn Shepherd, a fourth-year Environmental and Resource Science student is working with Shimano on an environmental assessment to see how we can reduce the environmental impact of cyclocross racing.
- The first graduate students in the Sustainable Guyana Program are conducting research at Trent that will result in a more positive environmental outcomes in Guyana. With studies looking into Indigenous knowledge about medicinal plants, the impact of gold mining on riverine systems and more they’re uncovering new cultural and industry insights, which are influential to sustainable community livelihoods.
Trent faculty are also investing in the action of communities by helping tell stories of environmental activism. History professor Dr. Finis Dunaway wrote an award-winning book about a struggle for environmental justice in the Arctic led by an activist and northern Indigenous community. This story is a lesson captured in literature that has the potential to inspire the action of others.
Collaborating for a greener tomorrow
Tackling the climate crisis requires collaboration. Trent continues to build strategic relationships with organizations that are helping advance a sustainable future. This past year, Trent became a key partner in the new Environmental and Related Technologies Hub (EaRTH District), a collaborative research consortium aimed at finding solutions that will fuel sustainable, resilient communities around the world.
We also announced a first-of-its-kind research collaboration with Karbon Brewing to develop zero-carbon solutions for the brewing industry, and a collaboration with ClearWater Farms to bolster sustainable agriculture research.
Through the future research park Cleantech Commons, Trent is fostering relationships with clean technology innovators, with affiliates of the research park working closely with Trent researchers on green, sustainable technology solutions.
Sharing our natural space
From fish and swallows to the conservation of wolves and caribou, species in Canada and beyond are getting a helping hand from faculty and student researchers at Trent. Thanks to the University’s longstanding research relationship with the Ministry for Northern Development, Mines, Natural Resources, and Forestry, Trent’s influence on the conservation of wildlife has extended into exciting research projects on Arctic shorebirds, species in the remote Polar Bear Provincial Park, and finding out why flying squirrels glow bright pink when exposed to ultraviolet light.
Investing in a sustainable campus
Ensuring Trent is an inspiring and sustainable campus community in which to learn, live, innovate, and be active is at the heart of the Trent Lands and Nature Areas Plan. Over the last year, since approval of the TLNAP in February 2021, several key initiatives have been launched, to support ecological function and biodiversity on campus.
Most notably, Trent received a $350,000 grant from TD Bank Group to implement environmental enhancement projects in the University Green Network (UGN), a connected natural system that includes areas for habitat preservation and creation, wildlife movement corridors, productive landscapes, and diverse green spaces that include the popular trails used by many in the community.
Trent is also realizing its holistic view of climate action and environmental preservation by implementing an active environmental and socially responsible governance (ESG) investment strategy for its Endowment Fund. Trent also made several investments in green infrastructure over the past year. The University installed energy performance upgrades, including an on-site Battery Energy Storage System, and a new electric vehicle charging stage at Trent University Durham GTA.
These stories are just a small sample of the larger effort by Trent University to participate and invest in climate action, which extends across sustainable infrastructure and operations, academia and education, research, finance and more.