As people around the world wonder what they can do to reduce their carbon footprint Vicki Tran, a Sheridan employee, is leading the way by cycling.
Vicki is the cycling coordinator at Sheridan College and a member of Sheridan’s Mission Zero Heroes. The Mission Zero Heroes are a group of Sheridan staff and students who have worked towards environmental sustainability and reducing climate change. Vicki has a long history of working with different schools and groups on environmental initiatives and has had an interest in the environment since childhood.
“Growing up as a kid I always imagined that the way the world worked, worked in the way that … would make the most sense efficiently for the ecosystem and the environment,” she says, “The more I was interested in it the more I did my own research growing up and … getting involved.”
Vicki always had a personal interest in biking but was surprised when it turned into her full-time job.
“I kind of fell into this career path,” she says, “but I’m really happy that I found cycling.”
Vicki is passionate about biking and getting others involved. She says it is good not only for the environment but for people’s social lives and overall health as well. And there’s data to back that up. The Adventure Cycling Association reports that if the average North American replaced three miles of their average trip with cycling it could save roughly 10 million tons of CO2 from being released into the atmosphere. And there are personal benefits as well. Cycling is not only a great exercise, but it’s low impact as well making it a potentially better choice than jogging or running.
Vicki’s hard work and passion for both the environment and cycling has resulted in her helping to open two bike hubs for Sheridan students, one at the HMC campus and one at Davis. These hubs provide a place for students to fulfill all their bike needs and help to encourage more students to get involved with cycling. This in turn helps reduce Sheridan’s overall carbon footprint and move the school towards being a positive climate actor.
“Having built the Mississauga bike hub … I’m really proud of everybody that came together to help me create that space, a safe space for everyone to enjoy,” Vicki says.
In terms of progress, Vicki says we’re taking steps but that there’s more to do. She describes the current environmental situation as “so dire” and hopes more people will join in to help.
“It just makes the most sense to care for nature who is providing everything that we could possibly ever ask for to thrive,” she says.
If you’re interested in getting involved with the environment at Sheridan you can see Sheridan’s Mission Zero at the link below.
https://missionzero.sheridancollege.ca/
