Sustainability in SD8

Why Develop a Sustainability Policy?

SD8’s Strategic Plan commits to responding to climate change. One step in that response is to develop a sustainability policy to set a vision for the school district to respond to climate change.

Latest Update

Policy 173: Climate Action and Sustainability was approved for field testing by the Board of Education at its September 10 Meeting of the Board Held in Public. This means the policy is now undergoing 30 days of partner and public review and pending results of field testing, will be finalized by the Board once the review period is completed.

Thank you to everyone who completed the survey!

Thanks to everyone who helped to develop this policy by completing the Sustainability Survey. Results from 357 surveys were compiled for the SD8 Sustainability Policy Development Advisory Council (SPDAC) and used to help identify sustainability priorities in the school district to guide policy work.

The Sustainability Policy Development Advisory Council

The Board of Education has established the Sustainability Policy Development Advisory Council (SPDAC) to advise the Board on the development of a policy related to responding to climate change in SD8, facilitated by an expert in policy development facilitation.

The SPDAC includes trustees and senior administrators, employee representatives, parent representatives, rights holders, community organizations, academic experts and students. The SPDAC is evaluating feedback from students, staff, and other education partners in the development of the policy and met every few weeks during the spring of 2024 to:

  1. Define sustainability.
  2. Review existing reporting tools and policies related to sustainability.
  3. Recommend areas of focus for a sustainability policy.
  4. Review current best practices for school districts in the area of sustainability.
  5. Recommend a draft sustainability policy.

The Ministry of Education and Child Care supports a focus in this area by partnering with the Climate Action Secretariat to ensure K–12 education remains aligned with provincial climate strategies and helps educators, students, families, and communities understand climate impacts, identify actions to prepare and adapt to climate change, and build climate resilience.

Why Develop a Sustainability Policy?

SD8’s Strategic Plan commits to responding to climate change. One step in that response is to develop a sustainability policy to set a vision for the school district to respond to climate change.

Latest Update

Policy 173: Climate Action and Sustainability was approved for field testing by the Board of Education at its September 10 Meeting of the Board Held in Public. This means the policy is now undergoing 30 days of partner and public review and pending results of field testing, will be finalized by the Board once the review period is completed.

Thank you to everyone who completed the survey!

Thanks to everyone who helped to develop this policy by completing the Sustainability Survey. Results from 357 surveys were compiled for the SD8 Sustainability Policy Development Advisory Council (SPDAC) and used to help identify sustainability priorities in the school district to guide policy work.

The Sustainability Policy Development Advisory Council

The Board of Education has established the Sustainability Policy Development Advisory Council (SPDAC) to advise the Board on the development of a policy related to responding to climate change in SD8, facilitated by an expert in policy development facilitation.

The SPDAC includes trustees and senior administrators, employee representatives, parent representatives, rights holders, community organizations, academic experts and students. The SPDAC is evaluating feedback from students, staff, and other education partners in the development of the policy and met every few weeks during the spring of 2024 to:

  1. Define sustainability.
  2. Review existing reporting tools and policies related to sustainability.
  3. Recommend areas of focus for a sustainability policy.
  4. Review current best practices for school districts in the area of sustainability.
  5. Recommend a draft sustainability policy.

The Ministry of Education and Child Care supports a focus in this area by partnering with the Climate Action Secretariat to ensure K–12 education remains aligned with provincial climate strategies and helps educators, students, families, and communities understand climate impacts, identify actions to prepare and adapt to climate change, and build climate resilience.

  • CLOSED: This survey has concluded.

    Sustainability Survey

    357 responses

    Thank you to everyone who completed a survey. Your individual responses are confidential. Information from this survey will only be shared as an overall summary of input.  

    Our Sustainability Policy Development Advisory Council (SPDAC) - an ad hoc Board committee made up of staff, students, education partners, and the Board of Education - will review overall survey results to determine what participants see as priorities to increase sustainability in the district. The council will incorporate survey results into a draft sustainability policy that includes a policy statement to identify focus areas to guide the school district to respond to climate change. The focus areas will not address details about how the district will implement the policy or how it will operate to address focus areas, but indicate sustainability priorities in a broader sense. 

    The SPDAC will submit the draft sustainability policy to the Board of Education for review in June, 2024 and the policy will be finalized by the Board in fall 2024.