Based on our participation, UM was ranked in 6 of the 17 SDGs. 

• SDG 3: Good Health and Wellbeing: UM climbed to sixth in Canada and 82nd in the world this year from the 401–600 range globally in 2024.
  

  Jamie Blanchard, Executive Director of the University of Manitoba’s Institute for Global Public Health, in Uttar Pradesh, India.

• SDG 6: Clean Water and Sanitation: UM is now eleventh in Canada and in the top 200 globally, reflecting strengths in water research and stewardship. 
• SDG 9: Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure: With a place among the top 20 in Canada, UM continues to build its reputation for impactful research and innovation. 
• SDG 13: Climate Action: UM ranks sixth in Canada and 89th globally, reflecting our leadership in Arctic and climate research. 
• SDG 16: Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions: UM ranks 12th in Canada and in the 101–200 global range, underscoring our work in Indigenous rights, governance, and social justice. 
• SDG 17: Partnerships for the Goals: A key area of growth, UM jumped to 201–300 this year, ranking 17th in Canada, from the 401–600 range globally in 2024.  

“UM’s research and community engagement has an incredible impact throughout the world on efforts connected to UN’s Sustainable Development Goals,” said Michael Benarroch, President and Vice-Chancellor. “We are often much too humble, but we are world leaders in climate action, health as a human right, water sustainability and so much more. I’m pleased to see UM get some of the recognition it deserves for all our efforts advancing these important goals.”  

The Times Higher Education Impact Rankings are the only global performance tables that assess universities against the UN SDGs. This year’s rankings included more than 2,000 institutions worldwide, making UM’s position even more noteworthy. This is UM’s second year participating in the rankings.  

Read more about UM’s progress and commitment to the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals.  

About the SDGS 

In April 2017, the president of the United Nations General Assembly wrote to higher education institutions around the world, including the University of Manitoba. The letter was delivered to spark movement and create a call-to-action to support the 2030 Agenda for Sustainability Development within the university environment. The university was encouraged to include the Global Goals as part of research, teaching and study within the institution. 

Sara Place from Colorado State University was the featured speaker at the Annual T.K. Lecture hosted by the Faculty of Agricultural and Food Sciences where she shared her expertise in livestock systems sustainability. The T.K. Cheung lecture is held annually at the University of Manitoba (UM) in honor of Dr. Tsang Kay Cheung, an alumnus who has made numerous contributions to education and research at UM.

Place grew up on a dairy farm in upstate New York and received her Bachelor of Science in Animal Science from Cornell University and a PhD in Animal Biology from the University of California. She is a part of AgNext, a research collaborative at Colorado State University that is focused on exploring sustainable animal agriculture including feedlot and dairy production, with an emphasis on the environmental and economic benefits.

According to Place, all economic, social and environmental domains within the value chain need to be considered to create a sustainable food system; one that provides food security and meets present needs without sacrificing needs of future generations. The food system must consider producers, consumers and the entire food production value chain.

How do cattle fit into sustainable food systems?

Place highlighted the role of cattle production as an integral component of sustainable food systems. Cattle have the unique ability to utilize human inedible ingredients including perennial forages and by-products while producing high quality protein, as well as producing many non-edible products that we use in our everyday lives. Their research team is working to build and strengthen the connections cattle have in a circular bioeconomy, including manure management and its impact on soil health as well as crop yield and quality.

Mitigating inefficiencies in our food system

According to Place, greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions including methane from cattle production are considered “leakage” or an inefficiency of the food system. To mitigate this inefficiency, Place and the AgNext team are studying methane emissions from enteric fermentation, the single largest source of emissions from cattle resulting from microbial fermentation of feed in the rumen. The AgNext team uses innovative feeding technology to capture individual feed intake data and to measure methane, hydrogen and oxygen emissions from cattle in order to understand factors that effect enteric methane production. These factors can include type of feed, feed additives, cattle genetics and production-enhancing technologies like implants. By collecting large amounts of data, the team is establishing emission baselines for use in modeling software. Exploring the rumen microbiome to improve efficiency and sustainability

Future research at AgNext will explore the effect of rumen microbiome manipulation on enteric methane production. The research aligns well with a new project at the UM led by Hooman Derakhshani, a researcher at the Department of Animal Science and a team of scientists from universities of British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Guelph, and from Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC). This research team has launched a groundbreaking project that will address enteric methane emissions from cattle by developing a database to characterize microbes in the rumen that are linked to low methane emissions and by exploring novel microbial feed additives that reduce methane emissions. The team will also use genomic research technology to identify heritable traits in cattle linked to methane emissions and feed efficiency. The outcomes of this research will assist in the development of Precision Management Strategies focused on the “3R” approach – Right genetics, Right feed, and Right production systems. More information on this project can be found in the February 2025 issue of Cattle Country.

Unique role of cattle in utilizing by-products from feed and food processing

As described by Place, the microbial community in the rumen give cattle a distinct advantage to utilize human-inedible ingredients, as well as those that may not meet consumer standards or are discarded after processing. Researchers at the UM are continuing to strengthen the connection of cattle to a circular bioeconomy by studying the use of food processing by-products and food waste. Although livestock operations may already use these by-products to meet nutrient requirements and reduce waste, there has been limited work conducted to explore the environmental sustainability of this practice. Janine Hansen, a graduate student at the Department of Animal Science has completed a research project that further demonstrates benefits of using these by-products in backgrounding and finishing cattle diets. Hansen, along with a team including UM researchers Kim Ominski and Marcos Cordeiro and researchers from AAFC and the University of Lethbridge (UL) have used data from a study in which a by-product from the bakery industry was substituted for corn in feedlot diets to examine the environmental footprint of cattle. Using modeling software, Hansen examined the environmental benefits of adding bread waste to cattle feed. Using these by-products reduced land, water and fertilizer resources needed to grow feed crops. When bread waste was included in backgrounding diets, land use was reduced by 45%, water use was reduced by 37% and GHG and ammonia emissions were both reduced by 14% and 4%, respectively. In finishing diets land use was reduced by 63%, water use was reduced by 61% and GHG emissions were reduced by 19%. Since the bread waste was diverted away from the landfill, GHG emissions into the environment were also reduced by 24% when the bread waste was used in the backgrounding diet and by 53% when used in the finishing diet further improving the sustainability of the food system and reducing the environmental footprint of cattle.

Imperfect potatoes are perfect for cattle feed

Researchers including Ominski, Cordeiro, Genet Mengistu and their partners at AAFC and UL have also examined the environmental benefits of using cull potatoes in feedlot diets. Cull potatoes may be discarded during storage or processing and if diverted to a landfill they provide no additional value and decompose, resulting in GHG emissions. Previous research has shown that cull potatoes are palatable, of high nutritive value and can partially replace cereal grains in cattle feed. Results from this project have shown that the use of cull potatoes also reduced land requirements (to grow feed crops) and GHG emissions into the environment by diverting the potatoes away from the landfill, by up to 30% and 22%, respectively. In addition to nutritive, environmental and economic benefits of adding these materials to feed, bread waste and cull potatoes can also serve as alternative feedstuffs during feed shortages resulting from flood or drought.

The T.K. Cheung Lecture featuring Sara Place together with podcasts and infographics highlighting research at the Faculty of Agricultural and Food Sciences can be found on the Manitoba Agriculture Knowledge Exchange website, an information sharing initiative between University of Manitoba and Manitoba Agriculture.

The university experience extends beyond textbooks and lectures—it’s also about building community, igniting change and shaping the future.

That spirit of leadership was on full display as eight alumni of the Indigenous Circle of Empowerment (ICE) program recently traveled to Iqaluit, Nunavut for the SevenGen Indigenous Youth Energy Summit.

One of the largest Indigenous youth gatherings on Turtle Island, the summit brought together Indigenous leaders, community members, industry experts, government officials and others to engage in dialogue, knowledge sharing and collaboration on energy-related issues—a conversation in which Indigenous youth are often underrepresented.

SevenGen 2024 offered the opportunity for ICE alumni to connect with like-minded youth, amplify each other’s voices and chart a course to a more sustainable energy future within their respective communities.

For Chloe Dreilich-Girard, a Métis student from Winnipeg in the second year of the Juris Doctor program at UM, the summit also reinforced important ideas around leadership that she can apply to her community, studies and beyond.

“Leadership, especially within our communities, is not something that is a top-down approach, but rather, starts from the ground up,” she says. “It’s about working in community, with community, in that circle mindset.”

The perspective of a shared experience also resonated deeply with others. Fourth-year health studies student and fellow ICE alum Lauren Hallett recognized “how much leadership is truly about instilling capacity and investing in others. For a lot of leaders, I think that’s what was given to them. People invest in you, and it’s our responsibility to reciprocate that.”

Having attended Indigenous youth gatherings in the Arizona desert and now the Canadian Arctic, student Elora Cromarty was able to reflect on a powerful, recurring theme, no matter the physical location of a nation or community. “You see how different and varied our cultures are, but also the similarities in values and belief systems,” says Cromarty, a member of Norway House Cree Nation who lives in Winnipeg.

Both within and outside of the summit programming, attendees had the chance to connect with Inuit culture and the local community. Not only were they able to take in the majestic beauty of the natural landscape, but they were also inspired by new possibilities for supporting their communities, bringing back valuable teachings and knowledge(s), particularly about our connections with the land.

“In an urban setting, it can be hard to connect with the land in the same ways when you’re surrounded by concrete buildings every day,” says Hallett, a Winnipeg-based Red River Métis, who pondered: “How can we make [the ideas of land, food and water as medicine] more accessible?”

For the students in attendance, the experience offered a true full-circle moment, seeing changemakers like summit co-chair Mihskakwan James Harper [BSc(ME)/17]—a fellow UM and ICE alum—drive meaningful change on a global scale. A citizen of Sturgeon Lake Cree Nation, Harper has continued to share his knowledge about clean energy at international conferences, crediting his innate drive to protect the earth to his cultural values.

Dreilich-Girard encourages students to take advantage of opportunities that allow them to carry their passion and purpose into their communities, while continuing to inspire the next generation of leaders and joining the vibrant group of changemakers who came before them.

“The memories and relationships you’ll make will be totally worth it,” she says. “When you come together, you’re stronger.”

UM students’ participation in the SevenGen Indigenous Youth Energy Summit was made possible by the generous support of the Mastercard Foundation’s EleV Program, as well as coordination by the Indigenous Leadership Programming team in the Office of the Vice-President (Indigenous).

Parsons said the inventory does not include some Manitoba projects that are close to proceeding but does suggest this province could be doing more, especially in terms of developing renewable energy and mining critical minerals.

“We’re being dissed, a little bit,” Parsons said Wednesday in an interview. “It is not a damnation-type report for us, but it is cautionary.”

To read the entire article, please follow the link to CBC Manitoba.

The 2024 Green Investment Fund offers a unique opportunity to bring your innovative ideas to life. Whether you’re a student, faculty or staff member, this is your chance to secure up to $100,000 in revolving funding for projects that promote environmental stewardship and sustainable practices. 

Last year, Mark Fry, associate professor, and his team in the biological sciences department applied to have the existing fluorescent fixtures in the 13,000 square-foot Animal Holding Facility replaced with an energy-efficient LED system.  
 
“The lights in part of the facility were old, installed when the Duff Roblin Building was constructed in the late 1960s,” says Fry. “These lights were nearing their end of life, and needed to be replaced with something that was appropriate for an animal facility.” 

Fry notes there were several possible choices to upgrade the lighting, but LED lights would provide quality lighting and were much more energy efficient than alternatives. However, they were also more expensive. 

“Sometimes, a choice may be a bit less expensive, but may not be the best choice for environmental sustainability,” says Fry. “The Green Investment Fund will certainly help make sustainability easier to choose in those cases where the more sustainable choice is more expensive.” 
 
Another project funded last year was a helium recovery system. Helium is critical to chemistry research on campus, but it’s a non-renewable resource. The chemistry department proposed the installation of a helium capture-and-liquification system to mitigate waste. 
 
“This would generate a closed loop system that would ultimately reduce the need for us to purchase liquid helium from external vendors,” says John Sorensen, professor and acting head of the department of chemistry. “This will reduce costs considerably and make our helium system more sustainable. It will also insulate us from price and supply shocks.”  

Revolving fund 

To be able to fund sustainable projects into the future, the Green Investment Fund is a revolving fund. Therefore, projects must demonstrate the ability to repay the awarded amount from generated revenue or cost savings within 10 years. 

“I would recommend that units carefully evaluate how savings would be realized and how those savings could be used to repay the GIF investment,” says Sorensen. “In our case the savings from needing to purchase external liquid helium will allow us to meet this expectation. 

Fry notes that in the initial consultation of the lighting project, Physical Plant provided a rough estimate of how much electricity would be saved by using LED lights. That, along with the financial incentive from the GIF, helped make the project decision easier. 

“The application process was easy, and I’d recommend that others who are planning a project evaluate whether the project could be helped by the Green Investment Fund.   

Apply to Green Investment Fund today.
 

Feeling inspired?  

Have a look around your area to see where the Green Investment Fund could make a difference. Here are some possible ideas: 

• Replacing inefficient equipment and appliances with energy efficient ones (eg. -80°C freezers)
• Projects ensuring fume hood sashes in labs are closed when not in use
• Switching to renewable energy sources
• Replacing disposable materials/supplies with reusable ones
• Implementing practices that reduce consumption of materials/supplies
• Recycling/repurposing resources 

In addition to the work being done at UM to electrify our fleet vehicles, there are things each one of us can do to help reduce our commuting footprint. If you are not ready to take the bus or ride a bike to campus, carpooling can help you reduce greenhouse gas emissions. 

Gaby Bergen carpools to university with a friend she met in high school. They both live about an hour south of the city. Bergen, a student and sustainability ambassador, says carpooling helps save on gas and car maintenance. Neither she nor her friend have a parking pass on campus, so they park and ride and take Winnipeg Transit once they are inside the city. 

“Carpooling is a fantastic way to make a positive impact on both the environment and your daily life. By sharing rides, we can significantly reduce our carbon footprint, helping to combat climate change and improve air quality,” says Bergen.  
 
“Beyond the environmental and financial benefits, carpooling offers a unique opportunity to connect with fellow students,” she adds.  “It’s a chance to make new friends, share ideas, and even collaborate on projects during the commute. Plus, it can make the journey to and from campus much more enjoyable and less stressful.”

You don’t have to carpool every day for it to have a benefit. 

Betty Cinq-Mars is a project assistant in Architectural and Engineering Services (AES), and she regularly takes the bus to work. She also carpools with colleagues in her office several times a week. 

“Through conversations with colleagues we discovered that we live fairly close to each other and they went right by my house when driving to work,” says Cinq-Mars. “This led to me travelling with them when it worked for us, and by using the bus when it didn’t.”

All three of them say that there are social benefits to carpooling, in addition to helping reduce emissions. 

“For us, it’s mostly about the good company,” says Andrew Lovatt, project manager in AES, who carpools with Cinq-Mars about once a week. “If we carpooled more often, there would be more benefits such as sharing the cost of gas/parking pass.” 

“It’s been a great way to build stronger relationships with colleagues,” says Anish Gaur, another project manager in AES. “Betty and I have gotten to know each other better and we often chat about our day or weekend plans. It’s refreshing to talk about things beyond work.” 

“Even if members of the UM community can’t carpool all the time, doing it occasionally or as a trial can dispel people’s potentially negative preconceptions about carpooling,” says Lovatt. 

Cinq-Mars agrees. “I think we can all get stuck in “all or nothing” thinking,” she says. “I think small changes where we can is probably the best way for most of us to contribute to change.  Don’t get hung up on perfection,” says Cinq-Mars. 

Find a carpool partner 

 If you are looking for a carpool partner at UM, GoManitoba can help you find one. The free platform connects you with others who are commuting to UM. You can search for other drivers or potential passengers based on your schedule and home address. 

There are also specific carpool stalls available in U, Q or B lots, and if you carpool you can share your parking permit between two cars.

The 2024 Green Investment Fund is now accepting applications, offering a unique opportunity to bring your innovative ideas to life. Whether you’re a student, faculty or staff member, this is your chance to secure up to $100,000 in revolving funding for projects that promote environmental stewardship and sustainable practices.

GIF details

• Funding Range: $10,000 – $100,000
• Eligibility: Open to students, faculty, and staff of UM
• Collaboration: Projects can be solo or a collaborative effort across multiple groups but must be sponsored by a faculty or administrative unit.

Application Deadline

Apply to the UM Green Investment Fund by 4 p.m. on December 20, 2024.

Project Criteria

Your project proposal should aim to:

• Reduce greenhouse gas emissions
• Reduce energy use
• Reduce water use
• Reduce waste
• Incorporate renewable energy
• Reduce demand on infrastructure

To be able to fund sustainable projects into the future, the Green Investment Fund is a revolving fund. Therefore, projects must demonstrate the ability to repay the awarded amount from generated revenue or cost savings within 10 years.

About the Green Investment Fund

Established in 2023, the UM Green Investment Fund was created to spur community involvement in helping UM reach our climate action goals and to encourage meaningful collaboration between faculty, staff, and students in the name of sustainability.

If you have any questions, please email greenfund@umanitoba.ca.

Here are everyday things you can do to get involved in the four key areas of our Climate Action Plan.

Energy and buildings

Energy use is the largest driver of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions at UM. While there are large projects ongoing to reduce heating-related GHG emissions, there are a few simple things you can do to help us reduce the energy we use:

• Switch off lights and devices you’re not using and when exiting rooms
• Dress more warmly instead of turning up the heat
• Only use space heaters when necessary
• Create an energy use reduction agreement with colleagues

Transportation

Transportation, including commuting to and from campus, business travel and the UM vehicle fleet, is the second-largest contributor to our GHG emissions each year. Luckily transportation is one of the easiest areas in which UM students, faculty and staff can get involved:

• Use active transportation methods to get to campus, like cycling or walking
• Carpool: Find a friend or three and commute to campus together
• Instead of driving from building to building at the Fort Garry campus, take the free shuttle
• Take public transportation; There are several routes to UM, along with park and ride options

Waste

The third-largest source of GHG emissions at UM is the waste we produce and send to landfills. The first and most important step in waste reduction is being conscious of the waste you generate. From there, you can take steps toward reducing and reusing:

• Use refillable coffee mugs and water bottles
• Ensure you’re placing waste, organics and recyclables in the correct bins
• Pack reusable containers and bags for lunch or shopping
• Participate in Waste Reduction Week (Oct. 21 to 27) and decide how you can reduce the waste you create

Land

As our campus continues to grow, efficient, respectful and sustainable land use is highly important. You can get directly involved in how UM supports the land we have the privilege of inhabiting:

• Leave natural spaces in the same condition as you found them
• Use active transportation methods that place less stress on our infrastructure
• Educate yourself and others on the history of the lands on which our campuses sit

There are numerous ways for all of us to get directly involved in building toward a more sustainable future for UM and our planet.

And if you are interested in adding sustainability courses to your degree, UM offers more than 900 courses across 85 academic departments at the undergraduate and graduate level that focus on or relate to sustainability. 

If you have any questions about initiatives and how you can help, please contact the Office of Sustainability.

UM’s Climate Action Plan focuses on overarching actions related to energy, transportation, waste and land. There are also ways for each of us to get involved on a daily basis.

To make it easier for faculty and staff to find the information they need to be sustainable in their work routines, the Office of Sustainability has launched an intranet page with helpful tips and resources. All you need is your @umanitoba.ca email address to sign in to the intranet and learn more about sustainability actions.

Here are the top four things you will find on the site.

Training and resources

The Sustainability intranet site has some great tips and resources to help faculty and staff join in the effort to reach our sustainability goals.

Take the Sustainability Course. This free, self-guided resource gives participants an introduction to climate action, waste and food choice, along with an overview of resources and options available on UM campuses.

Become a Green Office Representative and help initiate changes in your office space to support healthy lifestyle choices, make our campus more sustainable and provide an outstanding working environment.

Plus, check out the green office plant guide and learn about the benefits of greening your indoor space.

Planning an event? Go for green event certification. Make your next department meeting, conference or workshop a sustainable one with tips and resources for creating a greener event.

Waste reduction tips

Did you know that by using the appropriate waste disposal method on campus, we can reduce contamination in waste streams and ensure waste is handled responsibly?

Find all that you need to know about the office composting program, how to dispose of batteries and ink cartridges, electronic waste, lab equipment and more.

Using energy and water efficiently in the office

Managing buildings and utilities, such as electricity and water use, is something all departments, colleges and units play an important role in.

In addition to simple things like turning out the lights when you leave a room or dressing for the temperature of the office instead of using space heaters, you can find other tips to reduce energy consumption that are specific to working in an office or lab environment.

Green your commute with transportation tips

The second largest source of emissions at UM is transportation. UM is investing in electrifying our fleet vehicles and identifying opportunities to reduce business and research travel, but there are also things each of us can do to reduce our transportation emissions.

Reduce your emissions on your way to work by carpooling, taking a bus or cycling. UM offers carpool parking, cycling facilities on campus, and information on bus routes to Fort Garry, Bannatyne and William Norrie campuses.

Need to travel between the Fort Garry and Bannatyne campuses? Hop on the No. 36 Northwest Super Express route and leave your parking worries behind.

Looking for more information and inspiration? Follow the Office of Sustainability on Instagram or YouTube and sign up for the Sustainability newsletter to learn more ways to be sustainable.

October is Sustainability Month. All month long we are raising awareness and highlighting ways you can get involved in sustainability initiatives on campus.

Located in the northwest corner of the ALC parking lot, the ALB Bike Station currently offers covered and enclosed parking for up to 28 bicycles. . This is the first phase of the secured bike facility. The next phase will see the capacity expand in the facility to include additional racks to increase the number of bikes. Use of the space is currently free in this first phase.

This convenient and secure option encourages sustainable transportation and helps build a healthier campus community.

Who can use it?

Bike parking spots are available to all University of Manitoba faculty, staff and students who hold an active UM Recreation Services membership or Active Transportation monthly pass, as well as individuals with a current Recreation Services membership.

To introduce this new service, the Faculty of Kinesiology and Recreation Management is offering a free trial period for eligible users.

For more information about the free trial or to inquire about availability, please contact the Active Living Centre Customer Service Desk at 204-474-6100.

We encourage all eligible members of the University community to take advantage of this new amenity.