Universidad de Monterrey
EN-3: Student Life

“OIKOS” Is the first student group associated with the Sustainability Centre, and its main objective it’s to promote environmental awareness throughout campus by organizing different events such as “Bring back the green” and “Recharge” which promotes the different ecological programs and efforts carried out across campus with recycling games, outdoor activities and exhibition stands. “Troyanos en bici” It’s a student group associated to the Sustainability Centre which organizes different activities and events that promotes citizen participation trough social urban interventions such as special designed pedestrian crossings or physical regenerations in different parts of the city. Furthermore, the student group also promote sustainable multimodal urban transportation organizing public cycling routes within the University’s campus surroundings and throughout the city.

UDEM's community garden is located at the Residence Hall; it is a learning space for all the student community which promotes respect and appreciation of the environment through planting, harvesting, and composting activities. Each Wednesday for one hour the Sustainability club from the Residence hall devote their time to maintain this learning space that provides them fresh food for their everyday consumption. Additionally, during the school year, The Sustainability Centre offers a workshop where the most important learning outcomes are: the advantages of home-grown food, planting and harvesting times and cycles of vegetables and fruits and composting.

The University of Monterrey has a student association called Students In Free Enterprise - University of Monterrey (SIFE-UDEM), which co-runs and empower a small enterprise in the rural community of Caballerías de Villa Hidalgo, Zacatecas. The students help and train the 7 ladies in order to develop management skills needed to be fully established in the local market. The enterprise is called Siete Hermanas (Seven Sisters) focus in the production of alimentary products based in Nopal. Nowadays there is a small factory with the basic tools to produce Nopalitos in Escabeche (their main product) having a flow of sales, develop their business plan and search for local demand.

CONFERENCE PATH TO SUSTAINABILITY The University de Monterrey, through the Center for Sustainability, organizes a biannual Conference "Path to Sustainability". This event is a space that links the university community with researchers, academics, public and private companies and civil organizations presenting their experiences, projects and success stories in several components of sustainability. The conference program includes lectures by local and national speakers on issues related to ecological footprints, reduction of carbon dioxide emissions, urban mobility governance, alternative energy, sustainable construction and landscaping, sustainable industrial innovation, local cycling, water as the challenge of the millennium, recycling and programs in management of solid waste as well as national laws and regulations that concern the environmental field. The schedule is complemented by workshops in which students and teachers interact directly with the speakers; exhibitions of sustainable products, with a focus on fair trade and sustainable social entrepreneurship, art exhibitions, and workshops on recycling techniques, healthy eating, endangered species, natural medicine, native plants, typical crafts with recycled materials, among others. SUSTAINABILITY IN CLASS Exhibition of works and projects performed by students in class, applying sustainable solutions to environmental problems analyzed in the community by developing strategies of action around the three areas of sustainability: economic, ecological and social.

“salvARTE” Contest in which students, can express themselves by making artwork with waste materials, addressing the urgent need to raise awareness on reduction, recycling and reuse of solid waste and sensitizing the university community on the problem of waste generation and their impact within the environment. http://www.udem.edu.mx/Esp/Noticias-Eventos/Pages/Noticias/2014/mayo/bestiario-salvarte-prepa-udem.aspx

Lanzate center is a leadership center located within the facilities of the Universidad de Monterrey. It offers multiple programs dedicated to the development of leadership abilities through adventure and experience education. Some of the programs are rope courses, international expeditions to the Grand Canyon, Patagonia, Alaska, Costa Rica and Panama, where the participants will have the opportunity to develop skills and aptitudes that can be applied to their daily activities. One of the principles used in the methodology in the Lanzate Center is the “Leave no trace behind” principle developed by NOLS (National Outdoor Leadership School). This principle encourages all practitioners, leaders and adventurers to plan ahead, travel on certain types of terrain, proper waste disposal, minimize campfire impact and respect wildlife and other visitors. All to maximize the experience while preserving natural resources and the environment.

We offer two cocurricular courses that focus on sustainability: META (Current issues) The course is designed so that the student can approach the themes related to the 2020 vision of UDEM (sustainability, intercultural issues, integrity, citizen participation and leadership), in order to contribute to the formation of responsible, integral and participative citizens that know the needs have today's world. Environmental impact and solutions During the course, students will learn to value the environment in a balanced way for decision making. By means of documentaries, cases, definition of concepts and sharing of ideas, students will be able to generate a critical and holistic thinking about the anthropogenic impact and viable solutions.