Below is a roughly chronological summary of the sustainability and climate action initiatives undertaken by the Emily Carr Library in the last few years.
Streamlined waste disposal within the library
The library has attempted to streamline waste disposal by adding extra recycling bins for various categories of waste including paper, plastic containers, soft and flexible plastics, batteries, and compost bins for food waste. We have also tried to improve our signage, making it user-friendly and informative. Finally, we have reduced the number of garbage bins to encourage library patrons to recycle or compost waste materials in the library.
Reduced plastic in book processing
The Emily Carr University Library has significantly reduced its plastic use by leaving hardcover books unlaminated and by not putting mac tac on softcovers. Back when we started this initiative in 2022, we reduced our monthly plastic waste average from 460g to 80g, a nearly six-fold decrease.
Participate in Plastic Free July
Efforts to reduce plastic waste in the library were inspired by Plastic Free July, an international initiative involving millions of participants worldwide. ECU Library staff have participated in Plastic Free July since 2021. During that month, we try to eliminate plastics from our daily lives including lunches and snacks, and we share plastic reduction tips on our social media account.
Created a seed exchange with help from SCAN
Back in 2021 we also started the ECU Seed Swap in collaboration with the Student Climate Action Network. Since then, every year we order local, organic seeds, package them along with planting instructions, and put them on display at the front of the library where staff and students are invited to help themselves. Patrons can also bring seeds in for others to take. Throughout the growing season we host gardening events and share planting and harvesting information online.
Manage the Roots Union Garden
The ECU Library has also been instrumental in maintaining the Roots Union Garden on the fourth-floor patio in collaboration with students and staff around the school. The Roots Union is a co-operatively run garden where we grow vegetables, flowers, and dye plants for the enjoyment and use of ECU community members including local pollinators.
Created a permanent, mobile Sustainability Resources shelf and increased sustainability-related acquisitions
Partially inspired by a Seth Klein talk on the role that libraries can play in addressing climate change, we created a sustainability resources collection in 2021. Materials include books, videos and e-resources related to sustainability, climate change, recycling, carbon reduction, environmental art, economics, eco-philosophy, and Indigenous perspectives. Our acquisitions librarian has also expanded our sustainability-related collections, including items that promote land-based learning such as a birding backpack and local field guides. The Sustainability Resources selection makes the climate emergency visible while offering tangible tools and knowledge to combat it.
Participate in Climate Action Week
In 2022 the British Columbia Library Association Climate Action Committee started an annual Climate Action Week. At the ECU Library we have extended CAW to a full month and have offered a range of programming including electronic recycling collection, an emergency preparedness workshop, and an exhibition focusing on climate change which attracted seventeen artists from the ECU community. We also displayed our Sustainability Resources selection at the front of the library and wrote shelf talkers recommending specific titles. In 2024 we are planning an email and cloud storage delete-a-thon, a series of repair cafes, a climate grief sharing activity, and a field trip to the Capilano watershed.
Supply Swap and Facebook Buy Nothing Group
Throughout the year we take new and gently used art supply donations and put them out for staff and students to pick up and use in their art practice. In 2023 we started a Facebook buy nothing group for Emily Carr community members. Students, staff, and faculty can join the buy nothing group and exchange virtually anything free of charge. Both initiatives try to encourage a circular economy on campus.
Climate Action Research Assistant
In 2024 we hired our first student climate action research assistant. This student-led project included a series of textile mending workshops, the creation of a circulating mending kit including an instructive zine, and the expansion of our mending-related book collection.
Host the Fibre Library and knit night
In 2024 we also started hosting a Fibre Library, part of a series of small structures featuring free yarn and materials donated by community members. The student group who initiated the project have also been hosting monthly knit nights in the library to encourage community building around sustainability.
Window Signage
We are currently (as of October 2024) finishing up a project to add signage to our windows indicating native species planted in the garden just outside of the library. As part of this project, we are displaying the hən̓q̓əmin̓əm̓ and Musqueam names for each plant as well as various traditional uses of the plants. The window signage project is part of our efforts to encourage land-based learning while decolonizing the library space.
library@ecuad.ca 
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