SFU has earned a silver rating for its sustainability achievements from the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education.

The association’s sustainability tracking, assessment and rating system, or STARS, is a new program that appraises and encourages sustainability in education and research, operations and planning, administration and engagement.

SFU joined the STARS program last year as a charter member and submitted its first sustainability report earlier this year.

Preparing the university’s submission was a “huge undertaking,” says Sarah Stoner, SFU’s acting sustainability coordinator.

“It was a good learning experience,” says Stoner. “It also helped us evaluate our progress compared to other universities and gave us a road map for where we should be going in the future.”

This fall, Stoner plans to introduce the STARS indicators throughout the university and encourage all departments to include a sustainability development plan and data collection as part of their regular planning and budgeting regime.

Says Stoner: “There will be a common framework for everyone to develop sustainability measures and track their progress.”