Environmental Sustainability

Initiatives

We have many initiatives to decrease the waste we generate, increase the amount of material diverted from landfills and ensure we purchase environmentally preferred products. Some of these initiatives include:

• Green Office Paper: We switched across the organization to an environmentally-friendly printing/copying paper certified by the Forest Stewardship Council. This certification verifies that forest products like paper have been sourced in an environmentally-friendly, socially, and economically responsible manner.
• Medical Supplies Donations: we are working with organizations to collect surplus and short-dated medical supplies to give to remote clinics worldwide.
• Green Commuting: With over 85 per cent of our staff cycling, walking, and taking the public transit to work, we have partnered with Smart Commute to promote greener and healthier modes of transportation.
• Office Supplies Swap Room: An exchange program where staff can drop off or pick up used supplies with over 600 exchanges and counting.
• Reducing Energy Use: We have many initiatives on the go to make SickKids more energy-efficient and conserve energy, here are some of our past and current projects:
  • We installed LED lighting in the hospital and Peter Gilgan Centre for Research and Learning Centre
  • Our computers are Energy Star certified.
  • We encourage staff to turn off the lights and equipment when not needed - our researchers and labs close laboratory fume hoods at the Peter Gilgan Centre for Research and Learning Centre. An open sash consumes the same amount of energy as 3.5 homes annually.