The University of Wisconsin-Madison Associated Students of Madison approved a new Green Fund Nov. 14, which will allocate $80,000 from segregated fees for student-led sustainability initiatives on campus.
The ASM Sustainability Committee, which was formed in Spring 2013, first proposed the Green Fund in September.
ASM will make project applications available in Spring 2014, and students will receive funding for sustainability initiatives for the Fall 2014 semester pending approval by a student review board. The $80,000 fund will be divided into three $20,000 grants and two $10,000 grants.
Grants will go to students who want to implement programs that will impact campus sustainability, such as an email receipt service, which was suggested at the second ASM Sustainability Fair.
Sustainability Committee Chair Will Mulhern said at the fair the committee’s next steps are to finalize and promote the Green Fund.*
Contact Will Mulhern for more information about the Sustainability Committee and how to apply to receive a grant.
TIMELINE
Follow the passage of the Green Fund from its proposal to its passage in the ASM 2014-’15 internal budget.
Sustainability Committee discusses the possibility of a ‘green fund’
September 19, 2013
The Sustainability Committee began discussing the Green Fund in September. They planned the Green Fund would provide financial support for students to pursue environmental and sustainability-related initiatives on campus with money from student segregated fees. Segregated fees are fees students pay in addition to instructional fees as part of tuition, which fund services that are in line with the university’s overall educational mission.
Sustainability Committee finalizes proposal for ‘green fund’
October 16, 2013
The Sustainability Committee finalized Green Fund plans in October. Any UW-Madison student may apply for a grant. Grant applications require a 1,500 word proposal, which establishes the project’s mission and suggests a budget. The project must also have backing from both a faculty and an administrative member.
ASM Student Services Finance Committee approves ASM’s 2014-’15 internal budget
November 7, 2013
SSFC approved the 2014-’15 internal budget, which includes the $80,000 Green Fund, and it also removed an amendment to the budget that would have required the Student Council to vote twice more before money could be allocated to the Green Fund.
ASM Student Council passes 2014-’15 internal budget
November 14, 2013
After debate about SSFC’s removal of an amendment to the Green Fund, Student Council passed the 2014-’15 internal budget, which allocated money to the Green Fund but maintained the requirement that Student Council vote in two consecutive meetings to support the Green Fund.
* Student coverage of the ASM Green Fund courtesy of The Daily Cardinal student newspaper.
Article by Sarah Olson, Office of Sustainability