By Liz Do
The three new touch screen kiosks on campus, each with a $10,000 price tag, promote Ryerson’s environmental goals, but some students still have no idea they exist and President Sheldon Levy is skeptical.
When told that Ryerson picked up the $30,000 tab for the project, Levy was surprised.
“I didn’t know it was us paying the $10,000 dollars,” Levy said. “I would agree with the student — why are we paying $10,000?”
The new, large blue information kiosks are located in the Hub, the George Vari Engineering and Computing Centre and the Bond Street bookstore. Students can click on them to find out more about the university’s environmental initiatives, and what they can do to help Ryerson go green.
“So, what is this?” asked Tanzeel Gilani, a first-year chemical engineering student. “I thought it was a directory or something.”
Gilani, who has most of his classes in the engineering building, said he and other students aren’t likely to stop and take notice.
“I think most students are too consumed with classes, I’m pretty sure the majority of students don’t know anything about this,” he said.
But for Ian Hamilton, director of campus planning and facilities, the project was worth it.
“The project started about a year ago, in Septemeber. We saw how effective the one in Bond Street was, and the school thought it was important to promote this kind of message.”
Hamilton added that more kiosks will be built around campus in the coming months.
“The more we promote sustainability, the more students will respond to the idea,” he said.
In 2007, Ryerson was honoured with the Gold Award for its leadership in saving energy and reducing waste. And in the same year, the university won the Green Toronto Award for the “green roof” on the Engineering building.
The “green roof” is just one of the facts students could learn about if they were to stop at one of the kiosks.
Tommy Pang, a third-year student from York University, is pleased with Ryerson’s environmental message.
“That’s kind of cool, back at York, we don’t have anything like this, there’s no emphasis on the environment. You guys are definitely ahead of us.”
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