Clean Air Commute 2012

 

McMaster Wins the 2012 Clean Air Commute Challenge!

Congratulations to all who took part in the Clean Air Commute, as you helped contribute to McMaster winning the challenge for its size category. McMaster won the 2012 Clean Air Commute challenge with 12% participation rate!

 

CAC2012

From left: Jeff Chan, Sustainability Student Intern; Zeinab Rahal, Sustainability Assistant; Kate Whalen, Senior Manager, University Sustainability; Katie Ferguson, Manager, Experiential Education & Research Development

 

Event Recap
Event Overview
Schedule of Events
RJC-Specific Events
Prizes to be Won

 

Event Recap

This year's Clean Air Commute took place from June 18 to 24 with more than 180 workplaces participating. McMaster has participated in the challenge for the past 3 years and has succeeded to achieve top place by obtaining the highest participation rate for its size category.  This year, McMaster won the challenge with 12% participation rate.

Throughout the week, McMaster travelled more than 37,233 km in a sustainable way and avoided the emission of 6.89 tons of pollutants. In total, 3,175,385 km were travelled and 555 tons of emissions avoided.

Andrew Pettit, McMaster’s Sports Leagues and Camps Coordinator won the Clean Air Commute’s Spirit Award.  The Spirit Award is presented annually to the person who best embodies the spirit of the Clean Air Commute with their exemplary dedication to clean air commuting. Andrew is an avid cyclist who rides rain, snow or shine. He is also a Sustainability Ambassador and continuously promotes, along with other Ambassadors, clean air ways of commuting to all his co-workers.

All participants who logged a commute during the week were entered for a chance to win some great prizes. Congratulations to Julie Ling Ma, Jaclyn Ross, Janine Wong, David Devlaeminck, Adam Kuhn, Stephanie Merino, Heather Mackenzie, Melissa D’mello, Mia Thorne, Eliott Dumitru, Shawn Fleming, Mary Mastroianni, Jessica Doody and Caiti West!

Thank you to all the volunteers and participants who made this week so successful!

 

Event Overview

During the week of June 18-24, McMaster will be taking part in Pollution Probe’s Clean Air Commute.
During the challenge, students and employees are encouraged to commute to work (or school) in a cleaner way by biking, walking, telecommuting, taking public transit, driving a hybrid, carpooling or even just giving the car a tune-up!

McMaster University won the 2011 Clean Air Commute by having the highest rate of participation in its size category.

 

Schedule of Events

Thursday June 14

Early Registration Coffee and Cookie Table

9:30am - 12:30pm, Clubs Table MUSC

    • Come register, obtain your Clean Air Commute wristband and enjoy a free coffee and cookie.
    • Early registration means you get to bypass the line at our Pancake Breakfast. Don't forget your wristband!

     

 

Monday June 18

Free Pancake Breakfast

8:00am - 11:00am, MUSC Atrium

    • Come out and show your support for the Clean Air Commute and sustainable forms of transportation.
      • Pancakes to be served by McMaster celebratory chefs: Peter Self, Assistant Dean of Graduate Student Life and Research Training; David Campbell, MSU VP Administration; Brian McCarry, Departmental Chair in Environment and Health; Wade Hemsworth, Public Relations Manager; Jeffrey Wyngaarden, MSU VP Finance; Siobhan Stewart, MSU President; Scott MacDonald, MACgreen Director and more!
      • Pancakes, fresh fruit along with coffee and tea will be available. Be sure to bring your reusable mug! 
    • Register before the event and pick up your Clean Air Commute wristband from one of the following locations:
      • Your Sustainability Ambassador (if applicable)
      • Our booth in MUSC/Mills Plaza, running Tuesday June 19th to Friday June 22nd from 11:00am-2:00pm
      • Compass Information Desk in MUSC
      • RJC front desk
      • DTC Security Desk
      • MIP room 105

Clean Air Fair

11:30am - 3:00pm, MUSC/Mills Plaza

    • Come learn about MACgreen, MACycle, Environment Hamilton, Open Streets McMaster, Green Venture, Hamilton CarShare and their involvement in sustainable transportation.
    • Pick up an HSR route schedule, check out Security and Parking Services' hybrid vehicle and get a free bike tune-up courtesy of MACycle.
    • MACycle will be providing free bike tune-ups all week from 11:00am to 2:00pm in the MUSC/Mills Plaza.

 


Tuesday June 19

Coffee and Cookie Registration Table

10:00am - 1:00pm, Mills Lobby

    • Come register for the Clean Air Commute, obtain your wristband and enjoy a free coffee and cookie.

     

Group Walk around campus and Cootes Paradise

12:00pm - 1:00pm, meeting at the front steps of Gilmour Hall

    • Come out and enjoy a leisure walk led by Wayne Terryberry, coordinator of McMaster's Outdoor Recreation program.
    • Prizes will be given out to all participants who attend the walk.
    • Walk Route: Chegwin Trail
    • The event is weather dependent. Please check this page the day of the walk to confirm that it is still on.

     


Wednesday June 20

Carpool Wednesday

  • Send a picture of you and your coworker(s) carpooling to sustainability@mcmaster.ca and be entered into our carpool photo contest.

  • If you would like assistance in taking your photo, please send an e-mail to sustainability@mcmaster.ca by the end of the day on Tuesday June 19 with the location and time you wish to have your photo taken.

  • Be sure to send in your picture before the end of the day Friday June 29th and to log your sustainable commute.
  • Prizes include a lunch for you and your carpool at a Westdale restaurant.

 

 

Thursday June 21

Totally Transit Thursday (All day)

    • Pick up a Smart Commute wristband at locations around the city, show the driver your wristband when you enter the bus and ride the HSR for FREE all day Thursday.
    • Wristband Pick-up from these locations:
      • Your Sustainabilility Ambassador (if applicable)
      • Our booth in the MUSC/Mills Plaza, running Tuesday June 19th to Friday June 22nd from 11:00am-2:00pm
      • Compass Information Desk in MUSC
      • RJC front desk
      • DTC Security Desk
      • MIP room 105

 

Friday June 22

    Bike to Work (or School) Day

    11:00am - 2:00pm or while quantities last

    • Light refreshments will be available to cyclists who visit our booth in the MUSC/Mills Plaza and register for the Clean Air Commute. Don't forget your helmet!

       

    RJC-Specific Events

    TBA

     

    Prizes to be Won

    Logging a sustainable commute enters you into a GTHA-wide draw for a chance to win one of a number of fantastic grand prizes:

    • Two smart ebikes from smart Canada (retail value $4000 each)
    • One 4-hour skippered yacht charter on Lake Ontario for up to 12 people on a catamaran from Delphia Yacht Charters (retail value ~$800)
    • Three Mongoose mountain bikes
    • Two pairs of shoes from El Naturalista (winner chooses size and colour)
    • Four Blue Jays game ticket (in dugout) from Greenwood and Associates

     

    You will also be entered into a McMaster-specific for a chance to win one of a number of additional prizes:

    • A Cyclone Raleigh Mountain Bike
    • One of 2 free week-long carpool parking passes located on McMaster's main campus
    • One of 5 free year-long bicycle parking passes in McMaster's Secure Bike Storage Facility
    • A year-long bicycle parking pass in one of McMaster's CycleSafe bicycle lockers
    • One of 5 memberships to MACycle
    • One gift card for the purchase of an iPod Shuffle at Titles Bookstore
    • One monthly pass for the Hamilton HSR

     

    Additional Information:

      • For those who did not log their progress online at cleanaircommute.ca, don’t forget to drop off your paper diary card at Compass Information Desk located in the Student Centre by the end of the day on June 22.
      • Prizes will only be awarded to those who have logged a commute
      • Please note that prizes awarded by McMaster University may incur taxable benefits to the employee in some cases. Click here for details.