Please note: This project was originally funded by the 2022 McMaster Okanagan Special Project Funding and continues to be active during the 2024-2025 academic year. 

Too many of us are fundamentally out of touch with our relationship to the land and where our food comes from. Many of us also face various obstacles to accessing fresh healthy produce. As much as we may try to promote healthy eating through education and other programs, there is nothing like pulling a carrot out of the ground and composting the leftovers to change the way we think about food and our relationship with nature. According to FoodShare Toronto, “Those involved with community gardens are more likely to eat and continue in the off-season to eat more fruits and vegetables.”

Community gardens are a site for connection, a place to form a community, and a way to gain experience and skills (DeMuro, 2013). Currently located in the McMaster Teaching and Community Garden, the OPIRG Community Garden seeks to grow a thriving garden space where folks in need of fresh produce can access it, and all members of the McMaster community can enjoy the therapeutic benefits of gardening as well as the beauty of an urban garden. Students and faculty will be welcome to volunteer at the garden, join the various workshops that are hosted, and harvest the fresh produce we grow.

OPIRG McMaster is a student-run organization that seeks to empower students and community members to take action on diverse social justice and environmental issues by providing funding, training, resources, and support.

Please note: This project was originally funded by the 2023 McMaster Okanagan Special Project Funding and continues to be active during the 2024-2025 academic year. 

Choose to Reuse – ReusePass – is a new reusable to-go container program open to active students, staff, and faculty and available at Centro@Commons. In three easy steps, you can help McMaster University achieve its sustainability goals while also taking steps to protect the environment.

1. Order your to go order in a “green container” and check out at cash with your ReusePass.
2. Return your empty container to the Commons “Choose to Reuse” bin where it will be washed and sanitised.
3. Save $1.25 and reduce waste by selecting to dine-in or “Choose to Reuse” each time you eat at Centro.

Download the ReusePass.

Learn more about the ReusePass.

Please note: This project was originally funded by the 2023 McMaster Okanagan Special Project Funding and continues to be active during the 2024-2025 academic year. 

We’re Here! Celebrating the Diversity of the McMaster Community is a photo and image-based public art installation that aims to render visible the diversity of the McMaster community. The images are meant to increase a sense of belonging amongst marginalized students, faculty, and staff and serve as an outstanding welcome for racialized, queer, trans, disabled, Deaf, Mad, migrant, or otherwise traditionally marginalized individuals when they step on our campus.

Working with two artists from McMaster’s School of the Arts (SOTA) Artist in Residence program for 2023, four iArts undergraduate students will develop a series of images championing the contributions of McMaster’s diverse student and employee populations that will be displayed throughout campus.

Please note: This project was originally funded by the 2023 McMaster Okanagan Special Project Funding and continues to be active during the 2024-2025 academic year. 

Collective Care is a program operated by the MSU Student Health Education Centre (SHEC) and the MSU Women & Gender Equity Network (WGEN) that distributes digital gift cards to help students buy the resources they need, no questions asked. These resources include gender-affirming items, parenting and pregnancy items, safe(r) sex and menstrual items, personal care items and much more! Recognizing that the spectrum of student needs is ever-evolving, the program is dynamic, adaptable, and responsive to diverse individuals.

While the MSU services continue to play a pivotal role in student support, Collective Care bridges the gap for those whose needs may not be fully met by existing resources offered in our in-person spaces. It acknowledges that each student’s experience is unique, and barriers to well-being can manifest in various ways.

Please note: This project was originally funded by the 2023 McMaster Okanagan Special Project Funding and continues to be active during the 2024-2025 academic year. 

The Well-being of Residents and Partners (WRaP) in Medicine Toolkit and Workshop is an initiative aimed at addressing the burnout crisis faced by postgraduate medical trainees (residents & fellows) and their partners. Despite the professional growth and fulfillment that medical training offers, it can have a negative impact on trainees’ well-being, mental health, and personal relationships. The WRaP project seeks to better address the challenges facing this population and promote flourishing by enhancing and protecting trainees’ social support and personal relationships, which are novel and under-explored targets for intervention.

The WRaP project involves co-designing a practical toolkit and workshop with residents, fellows, partners, educators, leaders, and relationship experts. Insights will be used from emerging quantitative and qualitative research conducted at McMaster University, including in-depth interviews. The WRaP workshop will engage medical learners, educators, practicing physicians, and other healthcare professionals to raise awareness about medical training’s impact on trainees, staff, partners, and patients. Through these initiatives, the WRaP project aspires to promote and provoke change at the individual, couple, and educational levels, as well as the broader healthcare system’s practices, policies, and culture.