Built environment
With 14 campuses totaling over 3 million square feet of indoor space located in communities across our province, thousands of people interact with our buildings every day.
Sustainability in NSCC's built environment
Our built environment plays a crucial role in serving our students and community. Thanks to the ongoing efforts of our campus facilities staff, we maintain buildings that are comfortable, safe, and conducive to both learning and working. We are also committed to innovation and continuous improvement. Over the past year, NSCC has undertaken several significant projects, including building three new campus housing buildings, two of which opened this year, and a new campus. NSCC’s new campus housing provides safe, supportive, and non-profit housing for students, helping to address barriers to education amid the current rental shortage crisis. Additionally, they reduce the need for transportation to campuses, thereby lowering scope 3 emissions.
This year, the College adopted the Integrated Design Process (IDP), a highly regarded approach to building design that emphasizes collaboration among stakeholders to optimize system design. This process considers the entire lifecycle of a building, focusing on the impacts of design decisions on occupants as well as the broader environmental effects.
The College has found great value in this process as we continue to pursue Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification for each of our new building projects. NSCC’s new building projects at the Sydney Waterfront Campus, Akerley Campus housing and Pictou Campus housing are targeting LEED Gold, LEED Gold and LEED Silver certification, respectively.
LEED has been an invaluable tool in our efforts to incorporate the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) into our built environment. The built environment has significant potential to contribute to the delivery of the SDGs – not only through obvious connections like energy efficiency, reduction of greenhouse gases, and resilient infrastructure but also by enhancing health, accessibility, and access to education.
Goals for 2024/25
- Continue to reduce the impact of our buildings by engaging campus housing students in green living education.
- Install sustainable building interpretation signage and implement a self-guided building tour for the Sydney Waterfront Campus.
- Complete the LEED certification process for Sydney Waterfront Campus, Akerley Campus housing and Pictou Campus housing.
- Explore opportunities for new electric vehicle charging stations to complete NSCC’s EV charging network.
Recap of 2023/24
- Completion of three new buildings to improve services to students and the community, including two new student housing projects to assist in tackling the housing crisis. These projects have remained on schedule and budget.
- Underwent comprehensive welding and carpentry shop air quality testing and action planning.
- Integrated low impact design (LID) at Akerley Campus housing, where all rainwater will be managed onsite.
Sydney Waterfront Campus
NSCC’s long awaited Sydney Waterfront Campus opened in September of this year, welcoming students to the new downtown location. The 305,000 square foot campus not only provides new technologies and enhanced spaces but will have a much lower carbon footprint than conventional buildings and includes a number of innovative sustainable features.
The campus offers over 30 diverse programs delivered across the areas of Business, Trades and Transportation, Technology and Environment, Access, Education and Language, and Health and Human Services. The new location is also more accessible to the community and easier to reach on public transit.
Highlights from the Sydney Waterfront Campus include:
- The remediation of the site, which was composed of 7 former industrial contaminated parcels of land to current environmental standards.
- Climate change resilience planning, which resulted in raising the shoreline 1.25 metres to address sea level rise and storm surge projections for 2100.
- During construction opportunities were created for individuals often underrepresented in skilled trades; a minimum of 10% of the workforce on site was designated to women and equity-deserving groups.
- The completed buildings will be Rick Hansen Accessibility Certified and are aiming for LEED Gold certification.
- Buildings will be heated and cooled entirely by geothermal technology.
Campus housing projects
With housing occupancy and cost at an all-time high in Nova Scotia, students are struggling to secure sustainable housing arrangements. To help address this, NSCC has built campus housing at Akerley and Pictou Campuses and is currently building campus housing at Ivany Campus in partnership with the Provincial Government. These three buildings will provide 350 additional beds and a total of 168,000 square feet to provide safe, affordable, accessible and inclusive housing options on campus.
These projects will achieve the latest environmental sustainability and carbon reduction standards with goals to attain LEED v4.1, and Rick Hansen Foundation Accessibility Certifications. This will further advance resilient infrastructure and climate action at the College while enriching life on campus and providing increased opportunities for individuals to access quality education.
Campus housing project profiles
Akerley Campus housing
Project highlights
- Low impact design that will manage all rainwater on site
- Enhanced energy efficiency
- Low thermal bridging
- 80 kW of solar PV on the roof
- Electric vehicle chargers
- Recycling and waste sorting room on each floor
- 100 beds for students
Pictou Campus housing
Project highlights
- Enhanced energy efficiency
- Low thermal bridging
- Recycling and waste sorting room on each floor
- Designed to accommodate future rooftop solar PV
- 50 beds for students
Ivany Campus housing
Opening September 2025
Project highlights
- Enhanced energy efficiency
- Low thermal bridging
- Recycling and waste sorting room on each floor
- Designed to accommodate future rooftop solar PV
- 200 beds for students
Accessibility at NSCC
In 2021, 26% of NSCC's student population of 10,049 self-identified as having a disability.
In response to the Nova Scotia Accessibility Act and the province’s goal of a barrier-free Nova Scotia by 2030, NSCC established an Accessibility Advisory Committee (AAC) and launched NSCC’s Accessibility Plan. The Plan titled Setting the Stage: A Social Justice Approach to Accessibility recognizes accessibility as a human right and outlines goals and commitments to create a more equitable and inclusive college community through eight priority areas.
Accessibility audits have been completed at all NSCC campuses as they relate to compliance with national building codes, provincial regulations, accessibility guidelines, and related standards. The College strives to be highly responsive to the accessibility needs of our staff and students, prioritizing completing projects in a timely manner to best serve our community.
NSCC received a $100,000 grant from Employment and Social Development Canada’s 2022 Enabling Accessibility Fund – Small Projects Component to renovate two inaccessible female and male multistall washrooms to turn them each into universal washrooms at Strait Area Campus. This project not only addresses the need for accessible washrooms but also contributes to gender equity on campus.
A key focus this year was ensuring that our new buildings were barrier-free and accessible for everyone. In our new campus housing buildings barrier-free living is available in both single rooms and suites, giving all students the opportunity to choose their experience.
Some features of accessible student housing include:
- Kitchen counters with space underneath for wheeled mobility device access
- Barrier-free showers and grab bars
- Accessible cooktop with controls at the front to prevent reaching over a hot surface
- Vertical side-by-side refrigerator
- Height adjustable desk and adjustable chair with armrest and lumbar support
- All building controls such as light switches and thermostats are set at an accessible height
- Accessible parking with a direct pathway to the entrance
- Wider doorways
- Power-assisted doors
