Sustainability rankings often reward good intentions. Concordia is being recognized for results.
The university has been featured in the most recent Sustainable Campus Index, an initiative of the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE) that highlights top-performing institutions across key areas of sustainability.
This recognition reflects Concordia's performance under the most rigorous iteration of AASHE's Sustainability Tracking, Assessment and Rating System (STARS), version 3.0.
Among approximately 100 universities worldwide that submitted under STARS 3.0 and as the first Canadian university to do so Concordia placed first in transportation. The university also placed third in three additional categories: energy and climate, investment, and research.
"At Concordia, we find it important to measure our performance to guide our direction and set important priorities," says Cassandra Lamontagne, manager of the Office of Sustainability. "We're proud to jump in feet-first to STARS 3.0 because it means that we can orient ourselves toward more innovative and aspirational benchmarks."
Measured progress, measurable results
Lamontagne says the rankings reflect deliberate work across multiple areas of the university. These efforts have been guided by long-term planning and clear commitments, including Concordia's Sustainability Action Plan.
In the energy and climate area, Facilities Management has implemented a series of efficiency measures across campus infrastructure. These efforts include upgrades to the Grey Nuns (GN) Building, including more efficient boilers and a shift from gas to electric heating using off-peak electricity.
The university's performance in the investment category reflects how the Concordia University Inter-Generational Fund has advanced its sustainability objectives.
In 2019, the fund launched a six-year transition toward ensuring that 100 per cent of its investments are purpose-driven and sustainable. This transition completed in April 2025 commits the fund to fully sustainable investments. The fund is now focused on moving beyond a net-zero economy to a restorative one.
That same long-term thinking also shapes Concordia's academic mission, with research emerging as another area of strength.
"Every one of our academic departments is engaged in sustainability research," Lamontagne says. Examples include interdisciplinary centres such as the Loyola Sustainability Research Centre and the Next-Generation Cities Institute.
Concordia also recognizes and supports community-based research and is a signatory to the Declaration on Research Assessments, which promotes more inclusive ways of evaluating research impact.
Transportation Concordia's top-ranking category reflects both location and intention.
"The vast majority of our community commutes to campus using sustainable modes like cycling, bus and metro," Lamontagne says.
She notes that the university also promotes more sustainable business and research travel by offering discounted Via Rail fares, and, soon, expanding cycling infrastructure under the Climate Action Plan.
Looking ahead
Lamontagne says Concordia's strong showing in the Sustainable Campus Index is not a finish line, but a milestone on a longer sustainability journey.
Several initiatives now underway are expected to shape the university's next STARS submission. This work includes the PLAN/NET ZERØ pilot project, a deep energy retrofit of the Guy-De Maisonneuve (GM) Building that will significantly reduce energy consumption and eliminate greenhouse gas emissions from building operations.
Work is also beginning on the university's next Sustainability Action Plan, which will introduce a dedicated procurement stream for the first time broadening Concordia's approach to sustainability planning.
"I'm excited to have reached a point where we are building on previous successes in some areas, while just getting started in others," Lamontagne says.
"We're nurturing collaborations and setting initiatives in motion that will serve us in delivering on our sustainability commitments to our community for years to come."
Learn more about sustainability at Concordia.
