This semester, it may be easier than ever to spot students around campus in the coveted green-and-black SustainableUMD Terp t-shirt. With the support of a $45,000 grant from the Sustainability Fund, the Office of Sustainability is piloting an expanded outreach program which includes seven paid internships, more than a dozen Sustainability Ambassadors, and a focus on empowering students as peer-educators. The grant will support the development of in-depth training, leadership, professional development, and service learning for students engaged with sustainability on campus.
"We expect these programs to enhance the student experience by providing more access to data, knowledge, and information regarding campus sustainability accomplishments, barriers, challenges, and goals," said Taylor Brinks, an associate in the Office of Sustainability. By directly involving students in developing new approaches, UMD can continue to build a culture of sustainability where students gain first-hand experience and outreach programming stays fresh and relevant.
The previous award cycle funded a landmark 35 paid undergraduate student opportunities in sustainability for the 2022-2023 academic year. These positions were created by eight grants that received around $200,000 from the Sustainability Fund. In addition to the expanded outreach pilot, the Fund awarded grants to four research projects, the Terp to Terp Campus ReStore, production of a podcast about solutions, and a new pilot to increase local, plant-based food options in the Dining Halls.
“We really look for value to the undergraduate student body in terms of student experience but also number of students engaged,” Nina Jeffries, the previous Sustainability Fund Review Committee (SFRC) Student Chair, stated at a spring grant-writing workshop. “We also look at the environmental value and commitment to improving sustainability or other environmental performance standards on campus.” Hosted in spring 2022 by the Office of Sustainability and Academy for Entrepreneurship and Innovation, these grant-writing workshops aimed to help interested students, staff, and faculty begin the process of writing a Sustainability Fund application for the 2022-2023 cycle.
Reiterating Jeffries’ comments, Sabrina LaBold added: “We like to see any projects that are exciting and new.” LaBold will lead the student-majority Sustainability Fund Review Committee in the upcoming academic year. Students can apply to join the SFRC until September 13, 2022.
The Sustainability Fund is celebrating another major milestone in 2022 -- the first fee increase since the Fund’s inception in 2010. The student sustainability fee accounts for roughly 1% of the annual fees paid by students. The Sustainability Fund allocates all of the revenue from this fee to grant proposals reviewed by a student-led, student-majority review committee and approved by the University Sustainability Council on an annual basis. With the fee increase, the Fund will have more than $400,000 available to distribute in the 2022-2023 award cycle. All UMD students, staff, and faculty are eligible to apply by the priority deadline on October 15th or by January 15th.
Grants for Going Green
Apr 07, 2021 — Sustainability Fund Awards Over $400K to 10 Campus Projects
Grants for a Greener Campus
Sep 01, 2020 — 9 Sustainability Fund Projects to Reduce Emissions, Improve UMD’s Environment
UMD Announces $450K in Grants for Sustainability Fund Projects
Apr 23, 2019 — 17 Projects Will Reduce Plastic Use, Offset Carbon Emissions, Clean Stormwater, More
Five Sustainability Fund Projects That Changed UMD
Sep 19, 2019 — $300K in Grants Available This Year for Innovative Ideas