John Gunn said he fears the purpose-built Ramsey Lake Rd. research centre could even be sold for development by cash-strapped LU; ‘No one can confirm otherwise’
Laurentian University must not abandon its legacy of being a global leader in the environment as it restructures, the director of the Vale Living with Lakes Centre told the LU board of governors at their Oct. 29 meeting.
Back in April, Laurentian made massive cuts to its programs and employees. Among the programs cut were some related to the environment. That includes undergraduate programs in ecology, environmental science, environmental studies, major restoration ecology and restoration biology.
John Gunn said Laurentian’s environmental programs are what the local university is known for, given its work on environmental remediation in the Sudbury area, and this couldn’t be more important than it is now, as we face the mounting climate crisis.
Sudbury has “one of the most significant recovery stories the world has ever seen,” and Laurentian has played a huge role in that, he said. “In 1960, the year Laurentian was formed, was the largest point source of sulphur dioxide in the world,” Gunn said. “And today the Superstack is being torn down, and we’re down to two per cent (of the sulphur dioxide) of what it was then.”
For the rest of this article: https://www.sudbury.com/local-news/living-with-lakes-centre-director-says-laurentian-must-not-abandon-its-environmental-legacy-4710568