Chosen as one of Canada's Greenest Employers for 2012:
By Richard Yerema and Julien Gagnier, Mediacorp Canada Inc. staff editors
(
Apr 19, 2012)
Some of the reasons why YMCA of Greater Toronto was selected as one of Canada's Greenest Employers (2012):
has made a formal commitment to environmental leadership with the development, and approval from senior management, of a "Sustainability Green Document" that outlines the organization's environmental strategy
as part of its strategy, the organization has established green teams at each of its locations -- the teams are comprised of employees, YMCA members and community members who are responsible for reviewing and implementing onsite initiatives
green team leaders from each location also meet to form an organization-wide green team to ensure that the best ideas are shared across the YMCA -- past initiatives include volunteering for the Great Canadian Shoreline Clean-Up to the planting of a vegetable garden at a local school to Earth Day and Week celebrations
maintains a "green fund" that is dedicated to funding environmentally beneficial initiatives, including facility improvements, environmental education and workplace improvements that reduce its environmental footprint -- in two unique initiatives, the YMCA is attaching energy converters to stationary bikes to capture the resulting energy that is otherwise wasted and is installing a solar hot water system to heat the pool at its Scarborough location
in addition to measuring its carbon footprint, the YMCA maintains hundreds of recycling bins, utilizes a stationary supplier that provides 100% recycled paper products (and vegetable-based inks for printing)
the company has established an Environmental Procurement Strategy that includes a number of measures to ensure its many suppliers are taking steps to green their own organizations -- as part of this strategy, suppliers must provide an outline of their environmental polices (noting the YMCA considers environmental factors in supplier selection) and proactively seeks out environmentally sensitive products and services
has made a number of significant changes to offset and save energy in day-to-day operations, including a new solar hot water system at the YMCA's central location, energy saving lighting retrofits, and new heat recovery systems to safely recapture "waste" heat that was previously exhausted outside
the downtown facility features Toronto's largest public green roof, which features a running track, walkway, native plant species and even space for outdoor yoga and exercise
as part of a new "Smart Commute Program" the company has established a online "Carpool Zone" through which carpoolers can meet and track their energy and cost savings, and is working on a detailed cycling plan for its bicycle commuters
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