To welcome more McMaster community members back to campus this fall, outdoor spaces are being equipped with additional seating and increased Wi-Fi capacity to provide more opportunities to safely learn, study and collaborate in the fresh air.

These new, distanced spaces are currently available for individuals who presently work on campus and will be available to community members with in-person requirements to teach, learn, research or work this fall.

Students, staff and faculty members will find additional outdoor gathering places with seating like Adirondack chairs, picnic tables, benches and more, throughout campus in Wi-Fi enabled locations around campus. A map of all outdoor seating and Wi-Fi enabled areas on campus is available below:

Additional outdoor seating options are one of the ways McMaster is promoting the health and safety of our students, faculty members and staff as we prepare for the fall of 2021.

“Being outdoors minimizes the risk of COVID-19 transmission. The COVID-19 virus mainly spreads by aerosols or droplets in the air, and outside there is a higher volume of air and greater air circulation,” says Dr. Lori Burrows, associate director of the Michael G. DeGroote Institute for Infectious Diseases Research at McMaster. “It is great to see the additional outdoor seating and WiFi on campus as it will welcome physically distanced socializing outdoors, including research team discussions or having a coffee with a friend.”

To socialize safely outdoors, Dr. Burrows says to first consider personal risk and the vulnerability of others, including whether yourself and others are vaccinated. Maintaining two metres of physical distance outdoors while not wearing a mask is also advised.

“We are excited to have more of McMaster’s community back on campus this fall, and we hope that the additional spaces to sit and connect outside will be a welcoming sight upon arrival,” says Debbie Martin, assistant vice-president and chief facilities officer.

Gayleen Gray, assistant vice-president and chief technology officer adds, “Our IT teams have worked hard to implement wireless enhancements in these outdoor spaces and are excited to see the McMaster community using these locations as part of their in-person experience.”