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UBC 2030 competition attracts bold new student ideas

People and Places | Strategy 3: Thriving Communities
Theme: Innovation

Despite the challenges of COVID-19, there is reason for continued hope. Among them the ideas and energy of young people who have been leading climate action movements. A competition organized by the UBC Sustainability Initiative drew more than 40 inspiring visions and solutions from students and student groups, centred on the theme: “What will sustainability at UBC look like in 2030?” 

Posting to Instagram using the hashtag #UBC2030, students got creative with 30-second video clips, photo series, mock newspaper/magazine covers, songs, and multimedia art. Ideas ranged from ways to end environmental injustice, transform food systems, protect nature, improve green building and building retrofits, achieve zero waste, and more. Winning submissions included a video by student group Climate Justice UBC (Rachel Cheang and Nafeesa Alibhai), using a myriad of styles to highlight all the different voices that must be counted to shape a sustainable tomorrow.

“We are blown away by the creativity and passion of the UBC students who envisioned a more sustainable UBC in 2030 for our contest,” said Linda Nowlan, Senior Director of the UBC Sustainability Initiative. “If we can realize the visions of our students who entered the contest, there is hope for a more sustainable world.” 

The contest is one example of how UBC is committed to addressing priority sustainability issues in British Columbia and beyond, through engaging our community to help support the Strategic Plan’s Strategy 3: Thriving Communities.

Read the full story on the UBC Sustainability Initiative site.