Emory’s Office of Sustainability is once again offering its Sustainability Incentives Fund to students who wish to implement projects that promote sustainable practices within the Emory community.

These projects, which may encompass innovation in sustainable education, technology and volunteer opportunities, are meant to increase awareness about sustainability initiatives at Emory as well as implement technologies and “rituals” that decrease Emory’s non-sustainable practices and “foster cultural change,” according to the Office of Sustainability Initiative’s (OSI) website.

The fund grants up to $3,000 per project and is open to Emory, Oxford and Emory Healthcare faculty, staff and students, according to the OSI website.

Students must apply for this fund by Oct. 1 at 2 p.m. The winners will be announced on Oct. 23 in conjunction with a “campus sustainability day”-themed Wonderful Wednesday, according to Emily Cumbie-Drake, OSI sustainability program coordinator.

All projects are to be completed by Aug. 31, 2014.

A selection committee consisting of at least one Emory faculty, one Emory student and the Office of Sustainability Initiative’s staff will collaborate in deciding who will receive a grant, Cumbie-Drake said.

The committee will judge projects based off of five criteria: project relevance to Emory sustainability initiatives, clarity and feasibility, sustained impact, creativity and relative skills of the applicant, according to the OSI website.

In an effort not to waste the awarded funds, project leads must buy necessary materials themselves and will be reimbursed by OSI. Alternatively,  they can provide OSI a detailed shopping list of materials required for the project, Cumbie-Drake said.

College junior Elise Riley won the grant last year in order to teach students how to cook sustainably in a college setting.

She said this process allowed great flexibility to “personalize the terms” of her award.

“If I had an idea that would better my project, they were just as enthusiastic about it as I was,” Riley said regarding the OSI.

Emory began offering the grant in 2007 as part of OSI’s sustainability budget and did so through 2009. The grant was not offered in 2010 and 2011, because of staffing issues, but was reintroduced last year, according to Cumbie-Drake.

Cumbie-Drake said that although the committee will give out the money they have available and spread it among the selected projects, they encourage projects to apply for outside grants as well, such as through Residence Hall Councils if applicable to their project.

Residence Hall Association (RHA) Executive Board gives these councils funds to distribute for “building-wide projects and services,” according to the Emory Housing website.

The purpose of the grant is to discover the innovative ideas of the Emory community that possibly would not have otherwise been thought of within the OSI, Cumbie-Drake said.

Amanda Welter, facilities coordinator at the Robert W. Woodruff Library, used the grant last year and increased student awareness towards using the stairs that lead up to the stacks and said that she thought the application process was “simple and straightforward.”

Welter also plans  to apply for the grant this year to put hydration stations in the Woodruff library.

College junior Stephanie Mundel received the grant last year to install timers  in the showers at the Woodruff Residential Center’s Green Action Living-Learning Community, according to the OSI website.

“This fund empowers students to make a positive changes in the Emory community and gives students the opportunity to turn their environmental goals into reality without having to deal with a lot of bureaucratic mess,” Mundel said.

Cumbie-Drake’s advice to those who want to apply is to put as much thought and research into one’s application as possible. The more detailed, the better, she said.

– By Naomi Maisel 

Emory Wheel
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The Emory Wheel was founded in 1919 and is currently the only independent, student-run newspaper of Emory University. The Wheel publishes weekly on Wednesdays during the academic year, except during University holidays and scheduled publication intermissions.

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