LIVING LABS AT BÂTIMENT 7

The Sustainability Action Fund’s Living Labs partnership with the Office of Community Engagement at Concordia University to support student leadership in community-based sustainability projects at Bâtiment 7  wrapped up in late 2020.
The Living Labs at Bâtiment 7 Project was a 2-year initiative. The Living Labs initiative aimed to support projects that engaged community members of Pointe-Saint-Charles and students through a living laboratory method. This provides students opportunities for experiential learning while collaborating on meaningful projects that embrace sustainability and community action. Find out more here.
Stay tuned for more community Living Lab partnerships from the Sustainability Action Fund and the Office of Community Engagement!

What is a Living Lab?

A Living Laboratory puts research and learning into action through a collaborative model; it allows students to practice the theories they engage with in the classroom which enhances their skill base thereby creating stronger graduates. 

What is Bâtiment 7?

Bâtiment 7 is a former CN heritage industrial site in the neighborhood of Pointe-Saint-Charles that has been reclaimed by the community and is now home to 16 community-led projects that respond to local needs.

Photo Credit: Alex Megelas

Bâtiment 7 Projects

Diasporic Plant Wisdom

Diasporic Plant Wisdom is an intergenerational and intra-diasporic inititative that aims to facilitate the exchange of knowledge and solidarity building among Indigenous and diasporic communities in Tio’Tia:ke / Montreal by sharing herbal medicine and food traditions. This is necessary because the effects of colonization and displacement have caused many communities to lose access to their ... Read more

Forêt Curieuse residency program

The research phase of this project, wherein Indigenous Elders, artists and scholars would be invited to partake in a two week residency experience at CUFO from July 1-14 2024 in order to build relationships with the non-human relations and with each other while practicing their craft. After this initial residency the Indigenous artists will lead a weekend program ... Read more

Nature Positive Concordia

This flagship project of Nature Positive Concordia seeks to transform the campus grounds through greatly increasing the number and diversity of native perennial plants while at the same time engaging with the community to increase awareness of the importance of biodiversity. Establishing new pollinator gardens with educational signage identifying the plants and their ecological benefits, ... Read more

Mimi au Pays du Métal

The purpose of this film is not only to spark a conversation and call to action about gender dynamics, especially in a workplace, but also to engage in the deconstruction of the cinema industry’s stereotypes itself. This project is  committed to creating a productive learning environment on the film set, as well as a safe ... Read more

“and it’s just because I love you” QTBIPOC Artist Residency

‘-and it’s just because i love you’ is a month-long artist residency in partnership with Eastern Bloc and Cyber Love Hotel. The residency allows 6 QTBIPOC emerging artists and students to challenge themselves to create projects centered around love and intimacy; whether collective, individual, and/or ancestral. The residency will take place during the month of ... Read more

Volition

VOLITION, a 15-minute contemporary drama directed by Yzaïh Phénix-Alphonse, is a representation of Concordia University's commitment to sustainability through innovative storytelling, hands-on learning, and a dedication to social realism. The film revolves around the lives of two young black men, Desmond and Stiles, set against the vibrant backdrop of Montreal. Desmond, a talented filmmaker constrained ... Read more

JMAS Tax Clinic

The Tax clinic is an annual student-run event registered with the CRA’s Community Volunteer Income Tax Program (CVITP). Its purpose is to give back to the downtown Montreal community all while enhancing the student life at Concordia University. The majority of the individuals benefiting from our service come from a low-income bracket (many of them ... Read more

Concordia Underground Tours

Concordia Underground Tours is being rebooted with the support of SEIZE and QPIRG to provide an alternative, community-based tour to help newcomers find their place in the Concordia community. Many new students spend their first year or two simply trying to find things around campus; ways to get involved, cheap food and coffee, community events, ... Read more

Buckskin Babes Urban Hide Camp 2023

The Buckskin Babes Urban Moosehide Tanning Collective is a continuation of an immersive project that began in May of 2021 which centered around the reclamation of cultural practices for urban Indigenous peoples here in the city of Montreal. In the Spring of 2021 we collectively stretched and scraped two moose hides using traditional methods under ... Read more

By expanding our commitment to fostering sustainability off-campus this collaboration creates opportunities for students to engage with communities through impactful projects that address immediate social, economic, political, and environmental issues around Montreal.

-Sebastián Di Poi, Executive Director, Sustainability Action Fund Concorida

Click here to read a final report of the Living Labs at Batiment 7 program.