Green Fund Aims to Begin Operation in October

Will Davis, Environmental and Sustainability Issues Director, hopes to have the Green Fund fully staffed and operating by the end of October.

The Green Fund is a program that, once fully functioning, will provide avenue for expertise from all over campus to come together and work on sustainable resource projects that will benefit campus in the long run.

“There are students on this campus that have ideas for projects to make UWSP more sustainable and the only thing holding them back is access to funding,” Davis said.

The Green Fund will be operated by a Steering Committee and the Green Council. The Green Council will be made up of student organization representatives and students. They will meet with the Steering Committee to present ideas for projects they want the Green Fund to sponsor. These will be public meetings that anyone may attend.

“The structure will be composed of a Green Council which will bring all knowledgeable, motivated students and campus organizations together to vote on representatives for the Steering Committee,” Davis said. The representatives on the Steering Committee will be responsible for reviewing and approving potential projects seeking funding.”

The Steering Committee will include two ex-officio faculty members, a Student Government Association representative, and one member from RHA. There will also be other members to be elected by the Green Council. The Steering Committee will vote on which projects to implement on campus.

One example of the type of project the Green Fund would try to put into effect is solar-dock picnic table found on the patio outside of the Dreyfus University Center. It was paid for by the Green Fund’s predecessor, the Sustainability Reserve.

“Numerous sustainability and energy saving projects have been proposed in the past, but there has been little money available to enact them,” Davis said. “Students voted during the spring semester of 2013 to put $12 of their fees towards the new Green Fund. This amounts to about $100,000 per year.”

UW-La Crosse and UW-Eau Claire both have similar programs.

“This is a brand new program in UW-Stevens Point history and we are lucky to have access to this funding,” Davis said.

Students who are interested in sitting on the Green Council should contact Will Davis at Will.R.Davis@ uwsp.edu.​

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