The Trent Symons Campus Lands are a precious asset, rich in natural and cultural heritage, vital to the resilience of Trent and our communities. Our vision is to create an inspiring, sustainable, and complete community to learn, live, innovate, and be active. In our care for and use of the land, Trent will demonstrate leadership in environmental education and stewardship, respect for Indigenous Traditional Knowledge, and thoughtful integration of the natural and built environment. |
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University unveils new installation to educate community of Trent's location on treaty land
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Trent has unveiled a new installation recognizing the original treaties pertaining to the land upon which the Symons campus is built, and honouring the original signatories of the Michi Saagiig Anishnaabeg.
“For more than 50 years, Trent has been committed to providing education in Indigenous history, traditions, cultures, and Indigenous knowledges for students and the broader community,” says Julie Davis, vice-president of External Relations and Development at Trent University. “As we honour Truth and Reconciliation Day, recognizing the local treaties and the Michi Saagiig people is foundational.”
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The Trent Lands & Nature Areas Plan is founded upon a commitment to meaningful engagement, collaboration, and reconciliation with Indigenous peoples. With this, the deep and sustained involvement of the Michi Saagiig through the Elders & Traditional Knowledge Keepers Council and other platforms has been vital to Indigenous placemaking on the campus lands. These new installations are direct reflections of the effective and collaborative processes that have been guided by the Plan.
Outside of Bata Library, the University unveiled three limestone boulders bearing the symbols of the dodem (clan totems) carvings of the Treaty 20 Michi Saagiig signatories as well as a statement identifying the Symons Campus lands as being situated on Michi Saagiig traditional territory. The installation will help educate the community that Trent sits on land featuring Williams Treaty signatories.
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Workshop to be delivered at the National Gathering of the First Nations Education Administrators Association
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Chief Whetung and Ms. Davis will lead remarks geared to First Nation Directors of Education, principals, teachers, educators, Indigenous Institutes, and partners in First Nations education through a workshop session titled “Champions of Change; Honouring Resiliency”. Throughout their session, Chief Whetung and Ms. Davis will speak about the work of developing a gold-standard relationship between Trent University and Curve Lake First Nation.
Their workshop will focus on three main topics: practices of reconciliation, relationship in action through the Trent Lands and Nature Areas Plan, and the key learnings for both organizations along the way.
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“Our relationship with Trent University has become the standard we share in our other relationships; this is the goal that we set with a variety of partners and projects.
Being included as concepts take shape requires trust and faith. We work together from here to ensure that these projects, such as the elder care facility, reflect a mutual vision that answers needs on both sides of the relationship.
[At] every step, Curve Lake now feels like our voice has reached a point of being meaningfully considered and included, not just heard.”
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Chief Emily Whetung
Curve Lake First Nation
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Trent combines its renowned forensics leadership and reputation as one of Canada's top environmental research institutions with a commitment to sustainable development strategies
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Trent University’s Forensics Crime Facility sets new academic and environmental standards all at once. It is a first-of-its-kind professional forensics training building — with a goal to be Canada’s first zero-carbon building certified by the International Living Future Institute.
The new 4,100 square-foot building is a forward-thinking facility that pioneers clean building practices. Joined by the Alum-founded Endeavour Centre, Trent's design team pursued their goal by using construction materials with carbon-storing properties and powering the building with primarily renewable energy. The final product is an exceptional demonstration of the sustainable and low-impact development strategies described in the Plan that will ensure the adaptability of a thriving campus for future generations.
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Leading Environmental and Sustainability Features:
- Aiming to be First Zero-Carbon certification in Canada by the International Living Future Institute
- Solar-powered roof panels to heat, cool and power the facility to achieve Net Zero energy
- Hemp blocks from Albertan company Just Biofibre used to make the exterior structure
- Hemp batt insulation made in Quebec by Nature Fibers to be used for internal structure of the building
- Cellulose roof insulation made here in Ontario
- Charred wood siding from locally harvested wood
- Glavel under-floor insulation
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Trent and the Endeavour Centre used the Building Emissions Accounting for Materials (BEAM) tool to understand emission implications and aim for net carbon storage. |
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Trent Voices Weigh-In on Long-Term Care
Recent articles feature University leaders discussing opportunities for innovation in seniors care sector
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As long-term care remains a key focus for policy-makers and communities across Canada, Trent is proud to be home to leading thinkers with a vision for high-quality elder care.
Writing in the Peterborough Examiner, Dr. Mark Skinner and Dr. Kirsten Woodend offer a local perspective on this important subject. With more than 2500 older residents in the region waiting several years for services, caring for Peterborough's aging population is "one of the most pressing and complex issues facing our community today".
Trent's University-Integrated Seniors Village is well-positioned to address this local need. Dr. Skinner and Dr. Woodend note that Trent is the first institution in Ontario to join the global network of age-friendly universities, and has recently entered a research and teaching agreement with long-term care operator peopleCare Communities. They propose that "with a collaborative and forward-looking approach, our community is working to a benchmark of excellence for the future of aging."
Debra Cooper Burger, Chair of Trent's Board of Governors and past CEO of St. Joseph's at Fleming, also wrote about the need for innovation in seniors care. Drawing on her years of professional experience in the sector, she extols the value of integrated approaches to care like the Seniors Village.
"Solutions start with a continuum of care," she explains, "where community support services including transportation, housing options, and long-term care home beds are available and easily accessible to the people who need them."
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Progress Update: University-Integrated Seniors Village
Trent held public information sessions on the Senior’s Village in May of 2021 to share its vision and the results of environmental studies on the property where the Village will be located. The project planning team is currently working with the City of Peterborough on Stage 1 Site Plan approval and introducing peopleCare Communities to key organizations and stakeholders in the region to gain a strong understanding of the local needs that will inform the project.
Trent has also commissioned a researcher to develop a report on seniors villages, or ‘campuses of care’ as they are also known, around the world to help inform best practice planning for the project. We are anticipating community engagement sessions in Spring 2022 to share these findings and seek input on the community’s needs and interests for the long-term care home and Seniors Village.
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Trent Welcomes Inaugural Director of Campus Planning & Development
New role will support the implementation of the Trent Lands and Nature Areas Plan
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A warm Trent welcome goes out to Jennifer Clinesmith, who joined the Facilities Management team as Director, Campus Planning and Development this summer.
Jennifer has spent most of her career working in the public sector for various institutions including the Ontario Public Service, government agencies and municipal governments. She has spent the last 12 years as the Manager, Plan Review and Permitting for Otonabee Conservation. Jennifer is a Registered Professional Planner and a member of the Canadian Institute of Planners and the Ontario Professional Planners Institute.
A new role for the University, the focus of this director position is to oversee the Project Management Office in Facilities Management. She wil implement the approved Trent Lands and Nature Areas Plan for the Symons Campus, reflecting Trent’s vision for growth and development while stewarding a resilient and regenerative nature environment.
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