Last week, BEST joined Ontario’s higher education facilities community at the 2026 OAPPA Annual Conference, held from May 26 to 29 at Algoma University in Sault Ste. Marie. As a Gold Sponsor, we were proud to take part in a gathering centred on the theme “Resilient Campuses, Sustainable Futures”, a topic that maps closely onto the work our custodial teams do every day on Ontario campuses.
Myles Davis, BDM, and Shawn Meehan, Ontario’s GM, represented BEST this year. Between sessions, they spent time with long-standing partners, prospective clients, and peers from across the sector, and brought back a clearer read on the priorities driving decisions on campus and on what our clients value most in day-to-day operations. Events like OAPPA give us an early read on what institutions are looking for, a chance to strengthen the relationships we already have, and a setting to show prospective clients what BEST can do for them.
Sustainable futures start indoors
Sustainability ran through nearly every conversation, and a recurring point was that the cleaning program itself is part of a campus’s sustainability profile. Green-certified chemistry, concentrated dilution systems that use less product and less water, microfibre and energy-efficient equipment, and stronger waste-diversion practices all reduce environmental load while improving indoor air quality. That last point is where custodial work and sustainability meet wellness: a healthier indoor environment is not a separate goal from a greener one; they are the same goal measured in two ways.
Resilient campuses, day after day
Resilience was the second theme, and it kept coming back to people and the buildings they rely on. Strong custodial programs also keep campuses open and healthy through flu season and other disruptions, and trained, reliable teams are what let a building keep running when conditions change. Resilience, in that sense, is less about a single system and more about the consistency of the people and practices behind it.
Leading through change
Several sessions pushed institutions to think about how operations evolve over time. A University of Victoria session on continuous commissioning made the case for using data to keep building systems performing as conditions shift; and we can apply the same logic to custodial work. Digital inspections and QR checkpoints let teams measure quality against their standard, rather than relying on memory or assumption. Service models can flex with changing occupancy and hybrid schedules, and attracting and retaining frontline staff ties directly into the workforce pressures campuses themselves are navigating.
What we are carrying forward
Clean, healthy, well-run buildings are part of what makes a campus sustainable and resilient. Custodial is not separate from that goal; it supports it every day. We thank OAPPA, Algoma University, and everyone who made this year’s event what it was. We look forward to continuing the conversation and to supporting Ontario’s post-secondary institutions as they build resilient campuses and sustainable futures.
