Photo: Members of the sustainability, strategy and communications team at Holland Bloorview were responsible for the coordination, implementation and communication of the furniture donation project.

When a renovation left Holland Bloorview Kids Rehabilitation Hospital with nearly 25 tonnes of furniture it no longer needed, the usual answer would have been a trip to the landfill. Instead, in April 2026 the hospital found new homes for that excess furniture, and that decision has now earned it top recognition among Toronto’s academic hospitals.

At the Collaborative Centre for Climate, Health & Sustainable Care’s 2026 Climate & Health Conference hosted on October 23, 2026, Holland Bloorview was presented with the 2026 Climate & Health Award: Best in TAHSN for Organizational Innovation for its furniture donation project. The award builds on last year’s Best in TAHSN award for Low Carbon & Sustainable Buildings.

From surplus to second life

Working with Green Standards, an agency that supports organizations with sustainable decommissioning, Holland Bloorview assessed every sofa, filing cabinet and workstation removed during a recent renovation. Usable pieces were donated to the community or reused within the hospital, and the rest were responsibly recycled. Nothing went to landfill.

The furniture reached five community partners across the Greater Toronto Area, including two schools in the Toronto District School Board, the Ontario Employment Education and Research Centre, Sistering and the Horn of Africa International Development Organization. Together, these partners support students, newcomers, women in crisis and job seekers.

Impact by the numbers

• 24.6 tonnes of furniture diverted from landfill
• 26.9 tonnes of CO2e emissions avoided, equivalent to more than 11,000 litres of gasoline not burned, or 448 tree seedlings grown for 10 years
• $13,482 in charitable value generated
• $47,269, the estimated cost for partner organizations to buy the same items new

What made it innovative

Furniture removal is usually an unmeasured, behind-the-scenes task. This project changed that. Through Green Standards, the diversion and charitable value of each piece were tracked and verified, turning a routine disposal job into a documented, auditable sustainability outcome.

That approach also extends Holland Bloorview’s sustainability work beyond energy and buildings into asset management, an area that is often overlooked. And because the results are measured and repeatable, the project offers other TAHSN hospitals a ready model for turning surplus assets into community benefit.

“I’m incredibly proud of how our team turned a routine renovation task into real value for our community, measuring every piece of furniture and finding it a new home,” said Stewart Wong, vice president of communications, strategy and sustainability at Holland Bloorview. “This award is a reflection of our belief that sustainability is both a responsibility within our own walls and an opportunity to give back beyond them, and of a practical model for others to build upon.”

Holland Bloorview is grateful to the Collaborative Centre for Climate, Health and Sustainable Care for recognizing this effort.

About the ‘Best in TAHSN’ Climate & Health Awards

The Collaborative Centre for Climate, Health & Sustainable Care at the University of Toronto annually hosts the Climate & Health Awards, recognizing outstanding and innovative work demonstrating leadership and excellence in sustainable policies and practices.

Health care organizations within the Toronto Academic Health Science Network can submit their nominations for consideration, and award recipients are selected through a review process undertaken by the Climate & Health Awards committee.

Story and photos by William Lam