Future-Proof Labs: Elevating Sustainability in UBC Teaching Spaces

Project Team

Faculty Lead: Dave Ng, Associate Director and Professor of Teaching, Science, Michael Smith Laboratories, Faculty of Science

Staff Lead: Kate Andrews, Lead, Green Labs & Strategic Sustainability Programs, External Relations, Campus & Community Planning

Faculty Co-lead: Natalia Bercovich, Research Associate, BRC Molecular Biology Lab Lead, Rieseberg Lab, Department of Botany, Faculty of Science

Team Members

• Zainab Sayedain, Community Engagement & Strategic Projects Specialist, External Relations, Campus & Community Planning
• Matthew Langley, Science Education Lab Manager, Science, Michael Smith Laboratories
• Imelda Cheung, Education and Research Support Technician, Land and Food Systems, Food, Nutrition and Health
• Lewis Fausak, Education and Research Support Technician, Land and Food Systems, Food, Nutrition and Health

Scientific laboratories  across the globe produce unsustainable levels of plastic waste 

Each year, scientific laboratories generate massive volumes of plastic waste, enough to cover an area 23 times the size of Manhattan.¹ At UBC, an estimated 60 million single-use laboratory plastic (SULP) items are used each year.² UBC’s teaching labs contribute significantly to this problem, with thousands of students annually using pipettes, weighing boats, tubes, gloves, and other SULP, many of which are discarded after only seconds of use. Despite growing awareness of environmental challenges, hesitancy to change persists due to enduring questions around cost, convenience, sterility, and sustainability of alternatives.   

Living Lab Approach to Reducing Single-Use Plastics in Teaching Labs

The Future-Proof Labs project combines applied research, operational innovation, sustainability engagement, and creative knowledge mobilization to reduce SULP use in undergraduate teaching laboratories while strengthening sustainability literacy among future scientists. 

In Year 1, the project team will establish a comprehensive understanding of SULP consumption patterns across teaching laboratories at UBC's Vancouver campus through a detailed audit of materials use and waste streams. Surveys and engagement with educators will assess curriculum requirements, attitudes toward sustainable practices, operational constraints, and barriers to adoption. Findings will guide the selection of pilot sites where interventions can be collaboratively developed and tested. 

In Year 2, the project team will work directly with educators, operational partners, and sustainability experts to redesign selected laboratory protocols, prioritizing solutions that are practical, evidence-based, and capable of maintaining teaching quality and safety standards. Pilot interventions may include reusable alternatives, procurement changes, circular material systems, protocol redesign, or behavioural interventions. Their effectiveness will be evaluated through quantitative measures of SULP reduction and qualitative feedback from instructors and students. 

The project’s innovative approach lies in its integration of operational sustainability with education, interdisciplinary collaboration, and creative engagement. Unlike traditional waste-reduction initiatives, this project embeds sustainability directly into teaching infrastructure and pedagogy while positioning students as active participants in problem-solving. As a living lab, it transforms the campus into a site for experimentation and applied learning, generating real-world sustainability solutions through collaboration between researchers, educators, staff, and students. 

Knowledge sharing is central to the project design. Findings will be shared through a Sustainable Teaching Labs Symposium, a practical toolkit for educators, policy recommendations for institutional adoption, and a public art installation made from recovered laboratory plastics to spark dialogue and broaden awareness across campus. 

Reimagining Undergraduate Laboratories as Catalysts for Sustainability, Learning, and Cultural Change

The Future-Proof Labs project is expected to generate significant environmental, educational, institutional, and cultural benefits for UBC Vancouver and beyond. 

At the campus level, it will provide the first institution-wide understanding of SULP use in teaching laboratories and identify practical pathways to substantially reduce waste while preserving educational outcomes. The resulting evidence base and policy recommendations will support implementation of UBC’s operational sustainability commitments and help future-proof laboratory teaching infrastructure in response to climate and zero-waste priorities. 

For students, the project creates meaningful opportunities for experiential learning, interdisciplinary collaboration, and climate engagement. Students will directly participate in audits, pilot implementation, evaluation, and knowledge mobilization activities, gaining hands-on experience in sustainability problem-solving and systems change. By involving students in institutional decision-making related to laboratory sustainability, the project helps cultivate a generation of scientists and professionals equipped to embed sustainability principles into future research and workplace practices. 

The project team also seeks to catalyze a broader cultural shift in how laboratory science is practiced and taught. Visual storytelling, public engagement, and collaborative dialogue will be used to challenge assumptions around disposability and normalize sustainable laboratory practices among both students and educators. 

Beyond UBC, the Future-Proof Labs project will produce transferable knowledge, tools, and tested approaches that can inform teaching laboratories at other post-secondary institutions, research organizations, and sustainability practitioners seeking scalable strategies to reduce laboratory waste. By demonstrating how operational sustainability, education, and student engagement can be meaningfully integrated, the project positions UBC as a leader in sustainable science education and climate-responsive institutional practice. 

To learn more about this project, please feel free to contact the project team: Kate Andrews (kate.andrews@ubc.ca) and Natalia Bercovich (natalia.bercovich@ubc.ca).

Related Publications 

_{¹Calista Ow, Isobel Taylor-Hearn, Lydia Wunderley, Susan Taylor, Martin Pool, Maggy Fostier; Sustainable SDS-PAGE and Western blotting: cutting plastic, not corners. Biochem (Lond) 7 March 2025; 47 (1): 3–8.}

_{²Mygreenlab.org. 2025. Resources | My Green Lab. [online]}

_{Sánchez, Carolina. 2018. The Marine Impact of UBC’s Single-Use Plastics.}