A new model for advancing learning and research on sustainability is taking shape: the McGill Sustainability Park. That’s the official name for what had been called the New Vic Project, a nod to the buildings’ history as part of the Royal Victoria Hospital, which has moved to the Glen site of the McGill University Health Centre (MUHC).
“The name Sustainability Park is rooted in clarity and purpose. It will be a physical and intellectual space where transformative research and policy work on sustainability will take root, grow and flourish,” said Christopher Manfredi, Provost and Executive Vice-President (Academic).
Inclusion of the word “park” reflects the Mount Royal location but also the notion of a stimulating gathering place. In the future, McGillians are apt to refer to it simply as “The Park.”
“For McGill, it symbolizes a place of convergence: where people come together to exchange ideas, inspire one another and collaborate across disciplines,” said Manfredi.
Intellectual commons in the making
The plan is to organize researchers around issues. This pooling of expertise is intended to create more comprehensive views of sustainability challenges, which tend to be complex and evolving.
“The goal of the Sustainability Park is to create a physical and intellectual commons where McGill’s brightest minds work alongside government, industry and civil society to co-create solutions for
a resilient, equitable and sustainable world,” said Deep Saini, McGill President and Vice-Chancellor.
“We believe that, to match the pace of our rapidly evolving world, we need an integrated and collaborative approach that focuses on impact,” added Saini.
Collaborations, both planned and spontaneous
Though collaborations are nothing new within university settings, nor within academic research environments, the Sustainability Park will provide a new means of reducing barriers to exchange. Shared infrastructure and common areas like classrooms and collaboration spaces will bring policy experts into contact with biologists, chemists and engineers working on sustainability innovations.
McGill researchers developing the academic model for the Park are optimistic about the outcomes:
“When we do sustainability research, we want it to have real-world impact. To do this we must move beyond the traditional, siloed approaches,” said Andrew Gonzalez, Professor in the Department of Biology and Killam Fellow and Founding director of the Quebec Centre for Biodiversity Science. “I see these as research-to-action labs, dynamic learning spaces where McGill’s experts in multiple disciplines can collaborate not just with each other, but directly with local communities, entrepreneurs, industry and policymakers from the very beginning.
“This means we’re not just conducting research and hoping it gets used; we’re co-creating practical, evidence-based solutions to the pressing challenges of this century,” he added.
The approach is also one that students have been asking for.
“My students in Biology are just as engaged and enthusiastic about research in our field as they are about navigating across disciplines,” said Rees Kassen, Professor of Evolutionary Biology and Director of the Trottier Institute of Science and Public Policy.
“Though they may be committed to science, they also recognize that, to tackle the kinds of problems that really overwhelm them, they need other skills, notably in public policy. For example, how do you talk to policymakers? How do various levels of government work? That’s the kind of pedagogy that we will be well placed to offer through the Park,” said Kassen.
Wrapping up major infrastructure work
Building crews have been hard at work moving this vision closer to reality. The pace has accelerated to ensure delivery in 2029, said Pierre Major, the executive director of the Sustainability Park.
“When you see our project today, the change is dramatic. The decoupling and rebuilding of key infrastructure that was once shared between buildings – plumbing, heating, electrical – is complete. This was a monumental task, and I am proud that it is now in our rear-view mirror,” Major said.
In recent weeks, teams have completed the deconstruction of most of the postwar buildings and the main electrical substation. They are making way for McGill’s new buildings, being built according to LEED standard of sustainability.
“We’re also undertaking painstaking restoration work, taking care to preserve heritage elements. It’s been a complex balancing act, ensuring that our design meets the diverse and modern needs of our university,” he said.