Push yourself to be immersed into the content, no matter what you study or what you are interested in, the smallest person can make a big difference for our future!

How would you describe your knowledge of the concept of sustainability before this course?
I didn’t particularly know what is was other than we all should reduce, reuse, recycle and that we want resources to last a long time. I didn’t know there was a social aspect to it. I was interested in the idea of sustainability in terms of the human race but it’s also much more than that.

What was your favourite topic taught in class; what lessons will you take with you?
The case studies in corporate sustainability issues. I liked being forced to look into what actual companies are doing to be sustainable. It gave me an insight into my future as to how I would prevent green washing and how I am going to promote sustainability in my future.

If you could give any advice to a student interested in taking or enrolled in preparation for SUSTAIN 1S03, what would you say?
You should be excited!!! Push yourself to be immersed in the content. I believe every engineer should take this course because it is along the lines of what our future looks like. No matter what you study or what you are interested in, the smallest person can make a big difference for our future!

It's a course that students, regardless of their faculty, should take because much of your grade is heavily based on experential learning activities. You choose when you do it then you reflect on it!

Be open-minded and excited to learn about the content. You are coming into a space that may be completely new and challenge your beliefs and assumptions.

How would you describe your knowledge of the concept of sustainability before this course?
I had part knowledge, mostly from my volunteer work in high school. However, it was more environmental, only after learning of the Minor (in Sustainability) did I learn that it was more in-depth than I previously thought. It was interesting to learn that there is a huge social aspect of sustainability.

What was your favourite topic taught in class; what lessons will you take with you?
In our class it is discussed that the definition of sustainability is making sure we keep our resources available for future generations. The three sectors – Government, NGO, and private – and why they are important is a lesson that has stuck with me. You have to understand how to work in these three sectors because they all work in a different way. I also learned a lot about environmental assessments, regulations, and standards. Things I never even thought to think of.

If you could give any advice to a student interested in taking or enrolled in preparation for SUSTAIN 1S03, what would you say?
Be open minded and excited to learn about the content. You are coming into a space that may be completely new and challenge your belief or your assumptions. Keep in mind that this is an introduction course so you may be more interested in some topics than others.
When you choose your three experiences, go out of your way to really experience them. Choose experiences that you think might be meaningful to you and open your eyes to new ideas.
Take the reflection piece seriously, take the time to make that experience meaningful.
Don’t be afraid of the presentation – see it as a healthy challenge. Who knows, you may really enjoy it!

If people around the world engage in small changes in their everyday life to live more sustainably, we could collectively make a large impact.

“I have always had a keen interest in protecting the environment and living a sustainable life.”

When I was ten years old, my family and I travelled back home to Pakistan for the summer. One night, I woke up feeling really hot and I realized the power had gone out. It was then that I realized that the power intentionally goes out one or two hours every day. This trip made me realize that in Canada, we are fortunate to have an unlimited amount of resources that are taken for granted and we should not use our resources carelessly.

With this in mind, I decided to enroll in the course SUSTAIN 2S03 at McMaster University.  At the start, I had hoped to develop a deeper understanding and gain knowledge about sustainability, but little did I know that I would actively participate in a sustainable lifestyle challenge of my own! The lifestyle challenge helped me to become more aware of my own impact, taught me to evaluate associated challenges and possible solutions for change, and inspired me to put the solutions into action.

In choosing my lifestyle challenge, I decided to walk around my house for inspiration and I noticed one trend –there were many appliances that were plugged in but not in use. It reminded me about his phenomenon discuss in class, called “phantom power”, which is the power consumed by electronic that are plugged in but not in use, and it can account for as much as 10% of a single households electricity bill!   This is energy we do not even use! I decided to unplug all devices in standby mode in my home. Eventually, unplugging devices became a part of my daily routine and I was motivated to complete my checklist daily. This course gave me the necessary tools to embark on other exciting sustainable challenges beyond the course! For instance, I created a strategic plan and proposal, which provided a framework for how I would carry out my challenge. Also, I gained insight on other creative sustainable challenges conducted by students in the class.

As for my challenge, I plan to continue it after the end of the course and begin another new challenge! If people around the world engage in small changes in their everyday life to live more sustainably, we could collectively make a large impact.

I think this course is an excellent place to test your perceptions, meet with other people from different disciplines and backgrounds, and have an interesting semester.

What stood out in this course compared to other courses you have taken at McMaster?
Sustain 2S03 is very results and applications focused course. Unlike many other courses, it challenges you to challenge yourself on how you can be more sustainable as a person, while also lecturing on a variety of useful and sustainable initiatives. Unlike other courses, the interdisciplinary element is prominent, bringing together engineers, humanities, social science, and a variety of other majors in one classroom.

Did your perspective on society (locally and globally) change after participating in SUSTAIN 2S03?
I feel like a majority of people who are considering taking a SUSTAIN course are already involved or aware to some degree of the importance of sustainability. For me coming from a humanities background, the lessons regarding ecological versus environmental economics were something I had never even considered properly before. This course does an excellent job of building on what you already know while expanding your knowledge in ways you don’t have formal training in.

If you could give any advice to a student interested in taking, or enrolled in preparation, for SUSTAIN 2S03, what would you say?
I would strongly recommend you take it! The course is open to everyone, and even if you don’t intend to continue with Sustainability or pursue the Minor, I think this course is an excellent place to test your perceptions, meet with other people from different disciplines and backgrounds, and have an interesting semester. If you have limited electives to take, I think this course offers a lot.

It was really rewarding to take what I was learning in class and use it to make significant lifestyle changes.

“I’ve always been passionate about sustainability and how I can reduce my ecological footprint.”

When I found out that McMaster offered courses and a minor in sustainability, I jumped at the opportunity and enrolled in SUSTAIN 2S03. As part of the course, we got to choose a semester long lifestyle challenge, where we changed one aspect of our lives to be more sustainable. My lifestyle challenge was to go plastic-free. It was a rewarding and satisfying experience to take action by challenging the wasteful lifestyle habits that had become so ingrained and a normal part of everyday life.

After learning more about sustainability and identifying ways that I could incorporate sustainable behaviour into my daily life, I found myself using my reusable mug much more often and being thoughtful about purchases I made. I would use my mason jar at Bulk Barn to stock up on dry foods, use glass jars that I can return for a deposit, and take the paper alternative wherever possible (which I would compost after). It was really rewarding to take what I was learning in class and use it to make significant lifestyle changes. I would encourage any McMaster student that has an interest in sustainability from a health, economic, societal, or environmental perspective to enroll in a sustainability course!

I can say that completing this lifestyle project gave me one of the purest forms of education through experience that I’ve ever had in university & I will look back fondly as I continue learning more.

“My introduction to sustainability was on a mere whim of curiosity.”

As a life science student, I was very accustomed to textbook based content and memorization. SUSTAIN 2S03 had no tests or exams, but instead, the course revolved around a lifestyle project driven by personal experience.

At the time, I was a very unhealthy person especially in regards to my diet and also due to a business that I ran, I was consuming massive amounts of electricity from multiple computers and lights constantly being used. SoI decided to make my sustainability lifestyle challenge about reducing my consumption of electricity and meat. To understand how much I was consuming I monitored my meat intake for a week and calculated my weekly consumption of electricity using general electricity statistics. From there I set a goal to reduce my consumption of both these things by 30%.

As the term progressed I came to realize a few things. First was how my consumption of electricity at the beginning of the year was so wasteful. Out of habit I found myself leaving computers running or having lights left on when I was not not in the room. The second thing I realized was how my life had been greatly benefited from adopting a slightly more sustainable lifestyle. Especially in regards to meat consumption, which snowballed into losing weight, getting motivated to exercise, and finding alternative delicious recipes to replace the meat I was consuming. With regards to electricity use, this challenge pushed me to be more efficient with my energy consumption which enabled me to save over $200 a year. SUSTAIN 2S03 has changed my life so drastically from someone who knew close to nothing about the environment and its relation to economics and people, I can say that completing this lifestyle project gave me one of the purest forms of education through experience that I’ve ever had in university and I will look back fondly as I continue learning more.

One thing I really enjoyed about SUSTAIN 2S03 course was the personal lifestyle challenge.

The offerings of this course are truly unique and allow you to build your foundation as an advocate and leader.

The SUSTAIN 2SS3 course has been a true highlight of my degree so far and has allowed me to succeed in my current co-op position.

What stood out in this course compared to other courses you have taken at McMaster?
What stood out to me most about SUSTAIN 2SS3 was the community feeling that the course provided. From the very first lecture, the instructor created a safe space for us to collaborate and share our knowledge and lived experiences with one another. This allowed us to form personal connections with our classmates and provided a sense of community. initiative or project.

What was your most valuable takeaway from the project(s) you undertook during the course?
The end result isn’t everything — how you get there matters too. Advocacy is not a linear process, and it is important to consider the small victories along the way when doing advocacy work. It is equally as important to reflect on failures or setbacks that you encounter, as these can often provide valuable lessons.

What was your favourite topic taught in class; what lessons will you take with you?
My favourite topic taught in class was the principle of Anti-Oppressive Advocacy, and how it applies to sustainability. When discussing the concept of achieving sustainability, we often think that we simply have to make changes to our current systems — whether they be social, environmental, or policy changes. However, in order to create true sustainable change, we need to be willing to disrupt the system and address the various levels of oppression that exist in our society by asking ourselves, “who is not being heard?”.

If you could give any advice to a student interested in taking or enrolled in preparation for SUSTAIN 3SS3, what would you say?
SUSTAIN 2SS3 is so much more than a sustainability course. No matter your educational background or level of knowledge, this course allows you to explore sustainability through an advocacy lens and gain a holistic understanding of how to advocate for sustainable change at any level. The offerings of this course are truly unique and allow you to build your foundation as an advocate and leader.

The SUSTAIN 2SS3 course teaches you transferrable skills on how you can become a better advocate from a holistic approach.

What stood out in this course compared to other courses you have taken at McMaster?
What stood out about the course is the ability to work alongside a community partner. This gave you the opportunity to organize, research, or implement a community initiative or project.

What was your favourite topic taught in class; what lessons will you take with you?
A lesson that I took away from this course was the importance of evaluation, especially when it comes to event planning. It’s often we focus on the end result, but it’s equally as important to think of an evaluation plan, during the planning and implementation process, to be as successful as possible.

If you could give any advice to a student interested in taking or enrolled in preparation for SUSTAIN 3SS3, what would you say?
I would recommend enrolling in this class if you’re looking to better or improve your current advocacy skills. Although the class is within the Sustainability program, the skills and lessons that you learn are transferrable to any type of field of advocacy work that you are looking to pursue.

"SUSTAIN 2SS3 was such a cool class that was so different from any class I’ve taken before. It gave me a chance to actually make an impact through the community project. I would definitely recommend!"

"I didn't know what to expect when I registered but as I made my way through the course, I found the content to be enjoyable and applicable to problems I face every day and would face in my career."

"Advocating for Sustainability 2SS3 allowed me to promote humanitarian aid and I was able to make a change I always wished to see. Unlike any other course, working hands on with community partners."

"SUSTAIN 2SS3 gave me the opportunity to gain experience working in a community setting with the City of Hamilton and Cycle Hamilton and advocate for an issue that I strongly resonate with!"

It's a really unique course that allows you to delve into the intersectionality of sustainability by exploring various topics of sustainable justice and SDGs.

The one thing I love about this class, in particular, is that there is a lot of problem solving that goes on.

Listening to different perspectives on climate change and sustainability actually allowed me to imagine more innovative and inclusive climate solutions. 

Listening to different perspectives on climate change and sustainability actually allowed me to imagine more innovative and inclusive climate solutions. The online format of the class fit well with my schedule, but I was still able to connect with classmates online. I would recommend this to anyone looking to see a more hollistic view of sustainability.

I've embraced diverse academic perspectives, realizing that sustainability goes beyond one field. The course mantra “think globally, act locally” empowers students to weave sustainable futures.

You will have the opportunity to actively be a part of big changes in your community, as well as the chance to work alongside and connect with knowledgeable individuals in the field.

What knowledge, skills, and abilities did you develop in SUSTAIN 3S03 and continue to utilize in your personal and professional role(s)?
The 3S03 course allowed me to learn about interdisciplinary group work and the number of components that go into carrying out a large-scale project from start to finish. I was able to learn how to collaborate effectively in a team setting, which helped me to reach out and network with peers and professionals who could lend a hand in the planning and implementation stages of our project. Most importantly, I learned about the value of trial and error, and how to reflect and quickly adapt a project scope to meet an anticipated goal. Additionally, working on my 3S03 project taught me that having an open mindset and a willingness to listen, ask for help, and engage openly with others are assets in any role.

What was your most valuable takeaway from the project(s) you undertook during the course?
My most valuable takeaway from the project that I undertook during this course was in learning that positive support and encouragement don’t necessarily translate into environmentally conscious behaviour change. This value-intention gap is a common issue that needs to be overcome when trying to create forms of widespread change. This project was an ongoing learning process where evaluating each step and asking for constructive feedback helped us to improve on the project ideas and revaluate our expectations. Ultimately, asking tough questions and being open to reflection and feedback allowed us to come up with a product that was feasible and successful in the end.

If you could give any advice to a student interested in taking or enrolled in preparation for SUSTAIN 1S03, what would you say?
My advice to students who may be interested in taking SUSTAIN 3S03 would be to come in with an open mindset and a willingness to engage in discussions and projects. There is so much freedom with the projects that you will get to take on. You truly get to make them your own and the value you take out of this course is directly correlated to the effort you choose to put in. In 3S03, you will have the opportunity to actively be a part of big changes in your community, as well as the chance to work alongside and connect with knowledgeable individuals in the field.

Not only did we have the chance to learn about implementing sustainable change from incredible inspiring instructors, but we were also pushed to create REAL sustainable change in our community.

What were you trying to achieve?

Re-Root Coffee Creatives has created an alternate pathway for waste jute material to be diverted from landfills with an ultimate goal of supplementing the income of coffee growers and creating flexible employment for under-served Hamiltonians. We have created a series of consumer and industrial products utilizing 100% upcycled material, including a reusable coffee sleeve, reusable jute tote bag, and soil-erosion guards. Re-Root has pledged to purchase waste jute material from Detour Coffee Roasters in return for all proceeds being directed to coffee producers in their native countries. Our reusable coffee sleeve and bag are poised to replace single-use products in cafes while providing customers with a responsibly sourced hand-made good that supports both the local and international economies. In our early growth stage, we have chosen to focus our efforts on developing a compelling reusable sleeve, with plans to expand production to our other products in the near future.

What was your biggest accomplishment by the end of the course?

By the end of the course, we managed to produce 25 coffee sleeves and 5 tote bags, bundle them up, and ship them off to 5 Detour-affiliated cafés across Canada. This was incredibly exciting for us, as it represented all of our hard work and dedication, gave us the confidence to move forward and create a real-life business, and enabled us to connect with potential customers and receive feedback.

What would you say to anyone thinking about taking SUSTAIN 3S03?

JUST DO IT! Our entire group can attest to the fact that this course has been one of the best, most valuable experiences of our undergraduate careers. Not only did we have the chance to learn about implementing sustainable change from incredibly inspiring instructors such as Dr. Michael Mikulak and Dr. Kate Whalen, but we were also pushed to create REAL sustainable change in our community. The deadlines associated with this course and the motivation we felt while working with such beautiful people for such a wonderful cause was just the push we needed to make it over the humps of doubt and concern that had brought all of our past entrepreneurial ideas to a screeching halt. This course helped us to learn that while we may be young, that does not mean that our experiences and ideas are inadequate. We now know that we are more than capable of following our passions to create sustainable change, and this course gave us the knowledge, confidence, and support we needed to do so.

This course offers a unique perspective to the world of sustainability and marketing that no other course provides.

What were you trying to achieve?

The initial challenge we were given was to promote composting on campus, as it seemed to be unfamiliar for many students. We wanted to go beyond this scope and extend towards reducing the use of single-use plastics and promote waste-free alternatives in addition to encouraging on-campus composting. This evolved into our idea of creating a compact, convenient, and aesthetically pleasing kit that encourages a positive behaviour change towards sustainability for students at McMaster University.

What was your biggest accomplishment by the end of the course?

We were pleasantly surprised and proud of the seven kits we were able to sell during the semester. We weren’t sure how much interest and demand there was for a product like ours, so it generated a lot of momentum and excited us to build more. Clearly there is a market for it and we are ready to dive head first!

What have you done since the course? 

We were recently accepted into The Forge’s Start-Up School, administered by McMaster Innovation Park, where we are currently learning about the essentials for business development, receiving guidance and delivering a strong value proposition. This has been such an incredible opportunity for us to jump-start our idea into a business! We have thus far received amazing mentorship and direction and would definitely recommend it to students coming out of Sustain 3S03 or any other students with a start-up idea they’d like to launch! We have also established our social media presence and created an online order form which has greatly increased the promotion and advertisement of our kit.

What would you say to anyone thinking about taking SUSTAIN 3S03?

This course offers a unique perspective to the world of sustainability and marketing that no other course provides. Through experiential learning, we’ve gained a significant amount of knowledge from interdisciplinary perspectives and were given the opportunity to leverage our innovative thinking skills.  Being able to connect with the community and explore viable solutions to make an impact, no matter how small, was the most rewarding benefit. Not only did we develop an impactful solution, we met so many inspiring people along the way which has made this experience worthwhile and helped us create invaluable connections.

SUSTAIN 3S03 allowed me to be fully immersed in learning about sustainability in class and through our group project where we enacted real, sustainable change.

It was really fulfilling to work on a project with others that I know would have a positive impact in our community

The course provided me with an inspired interdisciplinary group of students who held many of the same interests as myself, but had vastly different skill sets and approaches to group work.

What knowledge, skills, and abilities did you develop in 3S03 and continue to utilize in your personal and professional role(s)?
Throughout 3S03, I have gained a thorough understanding of team management, goal-setting, and conflict resolution. The course provided me with an inspired interdisciplinary group of students who held many of the same interests as myself, but had vastly different skill sets and approaches to group work. Creating a work flow that allowed all of my teammates to excel and remain on the same page was challenging, but ultimately rewarding. Setting expectations and goals as a group allowed us to achieve an end result that we were all very proud of. As a medical student, I look forward to applying these skills in an interdisciplinary healthcare environment that demands open, clear, and honest communication.

Can you comment on the reflective learning you underwent in the course?
The reflective learning framework was a tool that allowed me to formalize the reflective process that I had naturally adopted as a student. In formalizing the process, I was able to identify concrete learning opportunities and the lessons that accompanied them. By repeating the process throughout, I not only learned from prior experiences, but I was able to set intentions before entering new experiences, with certain growth objectives in mind. This enriched the applied learning opportunity for me greatly!

If you could give any advice to a student interested in taking or enrolled in preparation for SUSTAIN 3S03, what would you say?
In preparation for SUSTAIN 3S03, I would recommend students create an inventory of the skills and experiences that they will bring to their future team. Conversely, honestly and openly identify areas for potential improvement that you may build while learning from teammates. Enter the course with the understanding that your own work flow may be personally effective, but there are different and equally effective ways to approach a problem. Create an open dialogue with all teammates and use this dialogue effectively from the onset. No issue is too small to raise in the appropriate manner and allowing yourself the space to do so will affirm the team’s joint expectations.