President’s Creative Challenge for Sustainability at Sheridan College

Since September, Sheridan students have been perfecting their projects for the President’s Creative Challenge for Sustainability for their chance to receive up to $5000 to implement their ideas into the school. Projects vary from paper waste reduction to a sustainable connections program.

“Well like the other participants, we are just trying to get something done for the environment. And I think everyone here actually has a passion for whatever they are presenting,” said Sunita Haridas, whose group of three people is working on stormwater management. The finalists range from an individual to groups of two or three.

Another finalist, Noly Lomingo, came up with the creative idea to build a shelter completely out of water bottles.

“This addresses the fact that our bottled waters don’t go anywhere. Not all of them are being recycled the way it’s made out to be. It’s just to sort of show, here, you know what, these models aren’t going away. They’re here, and it’s in your face. My idea was to have this in front of the campus, at each of the campuses,” said Lomingo. “What I hope to achieve is to bring awareness to a lot of the people here. My whole thing is, get people to change their behaviour, that in turn will change their attitude, and that attitude will hopefully increase their need to learn more about sustainability.”

Some of the projects are small simple things that could make a huge difference in the way that the school runs. 

“I’m currently an art student, so I’ve always wondered what happens to the paint when we wash our brushes and let that water down the sink, and what’s contained in these paints. So by looking into that, I developed this project,” said Kelly Kornet.

Kornet’s project idea is to add a second stage to the water filtration system at Sheridan, so that the toxins in the art supplies don’t affect the water. Adding a filter made of recycled aggregate from concrete or building materials will trap the chemicals by clinging to the rocks.

The Office of Sustainability will recommend a winner or winners on April 2 based on sustainability impact, scalability and implementation.

“They are all absolutely fantastic projects. And if you go through and you really see the impact that these could produce on Sheridan and within the communities around us, it’s amazing where these projects can go. In fact, it will be a very, very difficult choice,” said Elaine Hanson, Director for the Office of Sustainability.