Nicole Mayer

Did you know that healthcare facilities account for 3-8% of global greenhouse gas emissions? As SickKids is Canada’s most research-intensive hospital and a global leader in pediatric healthcare, it also presents an opportunity to be a leader in sustainability.
 
Throughout the summer, I was able to help the hospital work towards its goal of mobilizing a green organization by 2030 through education, communication and scientific analysis of waste management and wastewater reports.
 
One of the most interesting things I hadn’t considered before working at SickKids was the daily volume of people who come through the hospital. As it is a children’s hospital, for an appointment for one child, there is an average of 2-3 people accompanying them, such as parents, guardians and siblings, compared to the average hospital where adults can attend alone. This volume of people increases the overall consumption of resources and generation of waste threefold on a per-patient basis.