Over the past number of years, U of T has increased progress towards the long-term goal of institutional sustainability. With the introduction of the Sustainability Board in 2007, and Sustainability Offices at the St. George and UTSC campuses overseeing sustainability initiatives at all campuses, the foundation has been laid for the improved co-ordination and execution of energy and resource conservation plans at the university.

As with any undertaking of this scope, adequate funding is critical to success. The university has done a commendable job in acquiring funding for these projects. In 2008, they applied to internal and external agencies for grants and applications totaling over $650,000, coming away with $329,000. The efforts have generated an encouraging combination of unique energy saving initiatives on-campus and research projects focused on the development of future programs for energy saving.

Last week, the newspaper covered a set of initiatives at U of T that are currently installed and actively saving energy and money. Today, we take a look at U of T research projects behind the development of new energy saving technologies, and those that analyze which initiatives are financially feasible for introduction at the university moving forward.