Sustainability at West Coast

West Coast is committed to embed sustainability into all aspects of its operations.  This commitment is driven by our Strategic Plan and our Environmental Sustainability Policy which aims to embed sustainability into our curriculum and operational practices; engage our students and staff in principles and applications of sustainability; engage and collaborate with the broader community; and reduce our environmental footprint.

Environmental leadership and adherence to the Environmental Sustainability Policy is the responsibility of all West Coast employees, students and suppliers.

What is West Coast doing to be more sustainable?

West Coast is working on various initiatives to ensure its staff, students and campuses can become more sustainable.  These initiatives include:

Embedding sustainability into our curriculum and developing new courses like the Diploma of Carbon Management to meet the needs of the changing global economy (Link to article titled West Coast embeds sustainability into its curriculum)

Providing training, education and awareness opportunities for our community to participate in (Link to articles New Signage in Support of Sustainability Initiatives, West Coast supports Earth Hour, The West Coast Community is Encouraged to Join the Days of Change, Our Environmental Reps, West Coast embeds sustainability into its curriculum)

• Developing an Environmental Management System to identify and effectively manage our environmental impacts (Link to article entitled West Coast adopts a new System to improve its environmental performance)
  
• Installing sustainable infrastructure like photovoltaic panels, water tanks and recycling bins (links to articles Renewable Energy Generation at West Coast, Waste and Recycling at West Coast, West Coast is saving water)
  
• Developing and implementing sustainability programs like our Waste Minimisation and Recycling Program and our Energy Management Program (Link to articles Renewable Energy Generation at West Coast, Waste and Recycling at West Coast)
  
• Forming an Environmental Sustainability Committee to develop and implement programs that will enable the Institute to be a sector leader in sustainability
  
• Encouraging staff to become Environmental Champions (Link to article Our Environmental Reps)
  
• Engaging a Sustainability Coordinator to drive sustainability program across the organisation

What can our community do to be more sustainable at West Coast?

West Coast students and staff can be more sustainable on campus by:

• Turning off computers, monitors, printers and lights before leaving campus (Link to article West Coast supported Earth Hour)
  
• Bringing their own cup when buying a coffee on campus to save 50c and help reduce our carbon footprint
  
• Use the half flush and don’t run the tap (Link to article West Coast is saving water)
  
• Recycling waste at campus recycling centres (Link to article Recycling at West Coast)
  
• Using sustainable transport to come to and from campus
  
• Volunteering in their local community (Link to article West Coast encourages its community to volunteer)
  
• Making one change to reduce their impact - collectively we really can make a difference (Link to article The West Coast Community is Encouraged to Join the Days of Change)