Want to fight climate change? Join Concordia’s Drawdown Ecochallenge team from home
Cassandra Lamontagne, Concordia’s sustainability coordinator.
Concordia’s Sustainability Hub team is inviting all members of the university community to take part in the Drawdown Ecochallenge for this year’s Earth Day, April 22.
It’s a free online platform that encourages learning and actions based on the 100 most substantive solutions to the climate crisis. The challenges were compiled by Project Drawdown, a broad coalition of researchers, scientists, graduate students, PhDs, postdoctorates, policy-makers, business leaders and activists from across the globe.
Concordia’s Sustainability Hub Workgroup, an open-door collective working toward creating a culture of sustainability on campus, wanted to do something special to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Earth Day. In order to build community and encourage positive engagement, they launched a university-wide team to participate in the Drawdown Ecochallenge from home.
“What’s great about this platform is that it offers a number of different ways to take sustainability action,” says Cassandra Lamontagne, Concordia’s sustainability coordinator. Lamontagne works in the Office of Sustainability and is organizing the challenge alongside other members of the Sustainability Hub.
Participants are encouraged to choose among actions in the following categories:
- Transport
- Food
- Materials
- Women and girls
- Buildings and cities
- Electricity generation
- Land use
Importantly, there is also a social justice track that spans all categories.
‘Something for everyone’
Sustainability Hub members are hoping that the university’s team, CU for Change, will attract 100 people to join up.
“There is no right or wrong way to approach this. It’s meant as an impactful but approachable way for people to implement sustainability in their daily lives,” Lamontagne says.
“It’s an empowering tool because it guides us in making the positive contributions that are most relevant and meaningful for each of us. And together, as a community, that can add up to a whole lot of change!”
The challenge includes such actions as reducing meat consumption or using more efficient appliances. It also encourages awareness-based actions such as seeking out videos and articles on your preferred sustainability subjects or creating social media campaigns to engage people around issues that you find most interesting.
The Drawdown Ecochallenge officially begins on May 1 and the Sustainability Hub will be sending out information and tips to all who register for the Concordia team. Those interested can join in advance or while the challenge is already underway. Once registered, participants can browse the actions and commit to taking on the ones they find most appealing.
“There’s something for everyone,” Lamontagne notes. “The aim is not to add even more onto people’s plates during this difficult time. The goal is to build community and find easy ways to stay connected and do some good.”
Register to join Concordia’s CU for Change Drawdown Ecochallenge team.
