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Table 4: Sustainable Development Strategy

The Department's Sustainable Development Strategy was tabled in Parliament on December 20, 2006. The key departmental priorities are:

• decreasing building energy use;
• reducing vehicle emissions;
• expanding green procurement;
• increasing green processing in the delivery of programs and services;
• improving collaboration with communities for sustainability; and
• developing Signature Projects as examples of the Department's approach to sustainable development in policy making and program design.

The departmental Green Operations will involve twenty-four activities such as infrastructure energy saving initiatives, energy conserving lighting, decreasing office equipment energy use, recycling, fleet optimization, eco-driving or carpooling, green hotel usage, green procurement, e-waste management and simplification of program delivery document requirements.

The Department's longer term approach for the Sustainable Development Strategy is to select a focused number of meaningful projects to advance sustainable development knowledge from the policy and program design perspective. These Signature Projects will demonstrate that the Department is stretching beyond business as usual by representing a broader approach to review programs and identify areas where all three sustainable development areas – economic, environmental and social – are addressed. This will occur through the application of a sustainable development lens to policy and program development, requiring a greater investment of funds, time, and participation stretching beyond a three-year period. The Department is continuing Signature Projects in the following three areas:

• People: Supporting initiatives that help Canadians invest in themselves, by providing access to learning, income security, and supporting efficient and inclusive labour markets to improve the sustainability of communities.
• Partnerships: Leveraging knowledge and people to develop partnerships and identify new opportunities to encourage sustainable employment in particular as it relates to the environment.
• Knowledge: Generating a social and economic indicators information base to ensure that current Canadian social, environmental and economic factors inform decision-making.

The Department has determined that the best way to ensure probity and accountability for the outcomes identified in Greening Operations and Signature Projects is to strengthen the development, management and monitoring of proposed activities, and to ensure that staff are trained to incorporate sustainable development measures into their day-to-day work. Over and above these activities, in 2009-2010, the Department will be focusing on reducing its environmental impact through more efficient and environmentally-friendly processing of service offerings and increasing awareness of promoting the role of staff in undertaking sustainable development initiatives.

The following provides an overview of the planned Sustainable Development Strategy activities and their expected results for 2009-2010 as per governmental and departmental goals:

SDS Departmental Goals:

Federal SD goal, including GGO goals	Performance measurement from current SDS	Department's expected results for 2009-10
Building Energy: Energy consumption and Greenhouse Gas emissions reduced
Goal 3 Reduce greenhouse gas emissions 3.2.1 Support for clean technologies is provided (such as building, transportation, and industrial processes) Goal 5 Sustainable Development and Use of Natural Resources 5.2.1 Sustainable consumption and production of natural resources is promoted	1.1 Infrastructure Energy Saving Initiative	Reduced energy use for buildings
	1.2 Energy Conserving Lighting Initiative	Increased use of energy conserving lighting
	1.4 Recycling Initiative	Increased volume of recycled materials
	1.5 Offices Sharing Initiative	Increased number of shared office properties with different levels of government
Vehicle Emissions: Departmental vehicle usage has reduced Greenhouse Gas emissions
Goal 3 Reduce greenhouse gas emissions 3.3.1 Emissions are reduced	2.1 Fleet Optimization Strategy	Reduced vehicle fleet Greenhouse Gas emissions
	2.2 Carpooling Initiative	Increased carpooling with other government departments and jurisdictions
	2.4 Conducting Training Sessions with Fleet Management Employees	Increased sustainable vehicle usage awareness among staff
	2.5 Eco-Driving Initiative	Increased sustainable vehicle usage awareness among staff
Green Procurement: Most products and services purchased are ‘green'
Goal 5 Sustainable Development and Use of Natural Resources 5.3.1 Environmentally sustainable use of natural resources is promoted	3.1 Green Hotel Usage Initiative	Increased departmental purchases of ‘green' or sustainable products or services
	3.2 Sustainable Procurement Initiative	Increased departmental purchases of ‘green' or sustainable products or services
	3.3 Conducting Training Sessions with Administrative Assistants	Increased green procurement awareness among staff
	3.4 E-Waste Initiative	Increased procurement with e-Waste clause
Green Processing: Reduced environmental impacts for all services provided
Goal 5 Sustainable Development and Use of Natural Resources 5.3.1 Environmentally sustainable use of natural resources is promoted	4.1 Simplification of Program Delivery Requirements	Decreased service-delivery processing requirements and paper usage
	4.2 Paper Reduction Initiative	Reduced quantity of paper printed within the Department
	4.3 Processing Automation Initiatives	Decreased use of paper and energy to process service offerings
Collaboration with Communities: Communities are more engaged in sustainable development
Goal 4 Sustainable Communities 4.1.1 Communities are well positioned to advance sustainable social development 4.3.2 Risks to human and ecosystem health from harmful substances are reduced (including cleanup of federal contaminated sites) Goal 5 Sustainable Development and Use of Natural Resources 5.3.1 Environmentally sustainable use of natural resources is promoted	5.1 Promoting Environmentally Friendly Delivery Channels	Increase in awareness and use of electronic Service Canada service offerings
	5.2 Service Canada Service Centre Design Initiative	Increased number of Service Canada Service Centres designed to provide enhanced service experience
	5.3 Strengthening Environmental Assessment Functions	Increase the number of Grants and Contributions applications funded by Service Canada that receive environmental reviews
	5.4 Encouraging Staff Volunteerism in Local Communities	Increase in volunteerism by departmental staff in their communities
	5.5 Building Feedback Process to Policy Departments	Improvement in meeting client needs in the delivery of service offerings
	5.6 Diffusing Sustainable Development Information to Service Canada Centres	Posted and updated sustainable development information in Service Canada Centres
	5.7 Facilitating Recycling in Service Canada Centres	Increased volume of recycled materials in Service Canada Centres
Signature Projects: Environmental Industry has the necessary labour force to address environmental impacts; Information on the well-being of Canadians is used in decision-making; Labour market development that provide sustainable employment
Goal 4 Sustainable Communities 4.1.1 Communities are well positioned to advance sustainable social development 4.2.1 Communities are well positioned to adapt and to maintain or generate sustainable economic activities 4.3.2 Risks to human and ecosystem health from harmful substances are reduced (including clean-up of federal contaminated sites)	6.1 Partnerships – Sector Councils: Promote the work with the ECO council to encourage similar work in other sectors	Identification of future HR skills needs for the environmental sector
	6.2 Knowledge – indicators on the well-being of Canadians	Key indicators available
	6.3 People – Labour Market and Skills Development	Strategies developed and training available
Governance for Sustainable Development: Sustainable Development is incorporated into departmental policies and decision-making
Goal 6 Governance for Sustainable Development 6.1.1 Sustainable Development Strategy commitments are integrated into key planning and reporting processes of departments and agencies 6.1.2 Clear and effective governance mechanisms to integrated sustainable development in decision-making	7.1 Developing and Implementing Sustainable Development Policies and Directives	Sustainability initiatives within the Department supported by timely and appropriate policies and directives
	7.2 Establishing Organizational Structure dedicated to Sustainable Development	Ensuring that there are defined Sustainable Development leadership roles and responsibilities within the Department
	7.3 Integrating Sustainable Development Strategy into the Departmental Planning and Reporting Cycle	Reporting on the Sustainable Development Strategy in departmental documents including the RPP, DPR, and Service Canada Annual Report
	7.4 Building a Sustainable Development Recognition Program	Recognizing departmental staff for their Sustainable Development-related efforts
	7.5 Building Engagement Enablers	Increase awareness of sustainable development issues among staff
	7.6 Establishing Sustainable Development Network with representatives from all branches and regions	Developing a national network of Human Resources and Skills Development Canada to support sustainable development activities and assist with monitoring

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