The University’s Office of Environmental Stewardship and Sustainability is launching a Green Revolving Fund (GRF) competition to finance energy and water efficiency, renewable energy and other sustainability projects that generate cost savings. Proposals for GRF projects are now being accepted from across the community.
Cost savings from the projects will be tracked and used to replenish the fund for subsequent rounds of green investments, establishing a sustainable funding cycle while cutting operating costs and reducing environmental impact. Sewanee’s initial GRF is seeded by a $50,000 grant from the Jessie Ball duPont Fund, and matched by $100,000 from other gifts to the University. GRF projects include lighting upgrades, mechanical replacements, automatic controls, insulation, low-flow fixtures and building envelope upgrades.
The GRF program is taking applications from the campus community (faculty, staff, students and community members). Deadline for this round of funding is March 11. The first phase of this program is limited to University facilities and campus. Projects should be submitted by completing an online GRF project submission form.
Those projects that appear most competitive in each funding round will be more fully evaluated, engineered and described as GRF Project Proposals, a joint effort by the applicant and the Office of Sustainability. The criteria that will be used to evaluate projects include:
• Payback duration (projects with a payback of six years or less)
• Capital cost (projects that cost $15,000 or less)
• Specific environmental benefits, such as resource conservation or greenhouse gas reduction
• Potential for community engagement and collaboration
• Educational benefits
The Green Revolving Fund is an important component of the University’s Sustainability Master Plan’s commitment to reach carbon neutrality as an institution. This program will be the basis for substantial conservation investments over the coming decades. Energy conservation is one of the three key cornerstones of the plan, along with renewable energy and carbon offsets. For more information, including the submission form, go to <http://about.sewanee.edu/sustain>.
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