Fall Newsletter 2012 Volume III, Issue I Inside this issue:
Nature Village Launches at University Village
Cal Dining Sustainability Team
2
Learning & LEEDing at Cal
3
Water Cooler Conversion Guide
4
‘Bring Your Own Mug (BYOM)
4
6 Ways to Get Involved with TGIF
5
2011-2012 TGIF Annual Report
6
Accomplishments from TGIF Projects
7
October Sustainability Events
8
TGIF Info
9
Nature Village launched its activities with University Village residents at the Village Festival on September 22nd! Nature Village is a multidisciplinary and multicultural group incorporating University Village residents, UC Berkeley students & staff, nonprofit organizations, and volunteers, who are collaborating to achieve sustainable living practices at University Village in Albany.
Its participation in the Festival was framed by an attractive set up and an environment of community. Family activities were conducted by team members, guest groups, and local nonprofit organizations. During the Festival, enthusiastic Nature Village team members introduced this new project to village residents, who received this initiative with excitement. We are thrilled that new members have joined Nature Village!
Nature Village photos credited to Eiko Kielty.
The families signed up to participate in a Green Family Program and we are looking forward to working closely with families to promote green lifestyle principles. The Program includes activities such as energy audits & tips, use of drying racks, and water saving devices. (continued on pg. 7)
Nature Village Members
Break the Mode: Alternate Transport Marketing & Outreach Program Break the Mode is working on a new approach to changing drive-alone commute patterns to campus. This project will pilot a targeted outreach and marketing program during fall semester to encourage users of the University Hall parking structure to choose alternative travel modes through a personalized commute-matching campaign. The overall goal of the project is to provide campus commuters with the information, tools, and encouragement needed to make a mode shift. Offering University parking garage users the opportunity to "break the mode" will provide the insight needed for developing a replicable and fiscally sustainable process for implementing this type of marketing and outreach throughout campus. by Jessica Kuo, Break the Mode Project Manager Want to get involved with Break the Mode? Contact project manager Jessica Kuo at j.kuo@berkeley.edu for more information on becoming an education & outreach surveyor or a project event coordinator– these positions are paid and funded by The Green Initiative Fund! Check out Break the Mode’s TGIF project page here.
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The Cal Dining Sustainability Team has made great strides in furthering Cal Dining’s green initiatives! Ever since the creation of the team last spring, the interns have been busy searching for new ways Cal Dining can uphold and advance sustainability in their practices.
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Cal Dining Sustainability Team
A great jumpstart was made when a 2012 CACS Sustainability Award was given to Cal Dining and its student team. Cal Dining’s recognition as a green business does not stop there. Intern Nicholas Lam successfully helped Cal Catering acquire certification as the latest green department on campus. Nicholas has also been working on the re-certification of other campus dining commons. Exciting things are happening over at Foothill as well. A pilot for reusable to-go containers called “Chews to Reuse” was started at the beginning of the fall semester. “Chews to Reuse” is the brain child of sustainability intern, Monica Harnoto. Monica hopes to assess whether the use of reusable to-go containers instead of compostable to-go containers will be a costbenefit to Cal Dining and its patrons, and also lead to favora-
Team Interns Josh Hubert and Nicole Won tabling for Water Day.
ble environmental outcomes such as waste and water-use reduction. The Cal Dining Sustainability interns also aim to increase outreach to students on the topic of general sustainability. Interns Josh Hubert and Nicole Won coordinated a UN Water Day event in Crossroads in order to bring awareness of water and food security to the campus community. The event
proved to be effective thanks to the interactive questions and activities that were incorporated for educating fellow students. Earth Day 2012 was not left uncelebrated at Cal Dining. The interns worked to increase visibility of Cal Dining’s purchasing policy by posting signage about the origins of food served in Clark Kerr (continued on pg. 3)
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Cal Dining Sustainability Team (continued)
and Foothill dining commons for Earth Day. Nicole is now working to implement the signage more regularly and permanently over the course of this year. Currently, the sustainability interns are planning a campus-wide Food Day event on October 24, 2012. The event will aim to emphasize the importance of healthier diets, sustainable and organic farms, and reducing hunger. Activities will take place on-campus and in some of the residential halls, so be sure to save the date and participate! by Nicole Won TGIF awarded 2012 Grant Awards to Cal Dining Sustainability Team and Food Day.
Project Description: This 2012 TGIF Grant will fund three student interns and expand the BS@C LEED Intern Program to offer LEED certification services for campus renovation projects currently below the threshold required by the Campus Policy on Sustainable Practices. Goals: Expand the Building Sustainability @ Cal program to provide LEED documentation services such that the student interns would become integral parts of the project team, and plan a more major role in managing the documentation process. Develop a permanent project recharge model for these services, allowing the campus to retain resources rather than hire outside consultants. Interns will be assigned to work on specific campus renovation projects, documenting green building credits, especially on projects that would not normally be expected to document their green building practices. Interns will receive professional-level development and accreditation as LEED professionals.
Learning & LEEDing at Cal
Left to Right: Tatyana Vashchenko, Stacy Naglestad, Priscilla Chan, Rosanna Ren, Elizabeth Vissers Want more information? Check out the Learning & LEEDing at Cal TGIF Project page here!
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Water Cooler Conversion Guide Is your Department's Green Team thinking of eliminating the office water cooler but not sure where to start? There are many things to consider when thinking about eliminating the office water cooler or changing to a "bottle-less” cooler that is plumbed to the tap water line. From learning about the needs and concerns of the building occupants to the options for replacement, there are several steps recommended to identify solutions that will meet most everyone's needs, as well as align with the sustainability and health goals of the department and University. For Conversion Tools & Resources, visit the Water Cooler Conversion Guide website. Questions? Contact Trish Ratto, RD- Manager, Health*Matters Wellness Program at tratto@uhs.berkeley.edu
Take the pledge to BYOM! by Morgan Fabian, BYOM Intern
Selected by TGIF in 2010, The Bring Your Own Mug (BYOM) project was created to address the vast amount of paper waste in our community and promote a greater reuse culture. Our goals for the semester include increasing campus mug distribution and collaborating with student groups and local cafes to change our campus mentality to bring your own mug. Why should you reuse a cup? According to Factory Direct Promos, a manufacturer of environmentallyfriendly merchandise, for every four paper cups manufactured a pound of CO2 emissions is released - and Americans throw away a shocking 25 billion paper cups each year! It adds up quickly. Don’t forget to
grab that mug on your way out to your local coffee shop - you could even save some cash. Check out our “Bring Your Own Mug Map” at http://goo.gl/ maps/oBVoR to view what local cafes give BYOM discounts. Where can I get a mug? We are selling Klean Kanteen food-grade stainless steal mugs with our BYOM logo on them for $10 – you can find them today at the Berkeley Student Food Collective. Keep on the look-out for more locations this semester. BYOM has already placed 238 mugs into the hands of our campus community – and we’re excited for the numbers to grow! During the first week of October, we will be selecting up to 10 winners to receive a free BYOM
mug! How do you win? Like our Facebook page (www.facebook.com/Bring YourOwnMug) and write on our wall to tell us that you want to start practicing B.Y.O.M.! Want to get involved? We love collaborations! If your student group hosts any campus or community events, BYOM would love to support you. We would be happy to donate mugs for sustainability prizes to promote reuse. Do you have skills in video editing? Right now we are looking for students with experience in video-editing and filming to get involved in creating a short video on why its important to reuse your cups. Contact cal.byom@gmail.com for more information on how to get involved.
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6 Ways to Get Involved with TGIF! 1. Serve on the TGIF Committee and be part of the team that selects the projects that TGIF funds each year and guides the general direction of the TGIF program. The TGIF Committee has four student seats, two staff seats, and one faculty seat. 2. Develop a campus sustainability project and apply for a mini-grant or spring grant from TGIF. 3. Join an existing project that has already been funded by TGIF. Check out the "Grants-Projects Funded" tab to read about the various projects that have been funded by TGIF since 2008, email tgif_grants@berkeley.edu, and ask to be connected with a project that has interested you. Not sure which project to join? Inquire about volunteer needs with the different TGIF projectsmany projects can always use more volunteers or paid student interns. 4. Apply for a student internship funded by TGIF. Most of TGIF's funded projects include a budget to hire student interns- visit our Jobs page or join the TGIF listserv by sending an email to tgif_info@berkeley.edu. 5. Volunteer with the TGIF Coordinator. Duties include, but not limited to, outreach and publicity, video production, and sustainability metrics analysis and reporting. Potential for a paid internship position. Email Katherine Walsh at kwalsh@berkeley.edu. 6. Start your own green fund. Are you from another campus and would like to have a campus sustainability fund at your school? Be sure to check out our different resources for assisting you with the process: Campaign History, Referendum, Bylaws, Green Fund Resources, Start Your Own Green Fund.
Nature Village Launches at University Village (continued)
A “Resource Flow” interactive poster was presented with easy-to read data of how much resources are being used, at the Village, where they come from, and the Village carbon footprint, as well as how much trash and recyclable materials are produced in the Village, in order to create awareness amongst residents. Student group BS@C participated by conducting games for children to learn about green practices at home. They will also be in
charge of carrying out Village energy audits as part of the Green Family Program and are getting involved in more activities with this very special community.
tal topics by providing sessions of storytelling that captured the attention of the little ones. Families really enjoyed these activities and discovering multilingual books!
Nature Village is funded by a 2012 TGIF Grant and the Village Festival kick-off was just the starting point for much more to come– stay tuned for future activities! To join this community based project or learn more about future activities, contact info@naturevillage.org.
An early environmental education activity was conducted by Raising a Reader and Barefoot Books. They joined forces to expose families to a multitude of children’s multi-cultural literature on environmen-
As part of an effort to promote the use of the bicycle for transportation and recreation, the East Bay Bicycle Coalition (EBBC) shared a large quantity of information on their services, gave out maps, and promoted an upcoming Family Cycling Workshop, to be offered in the Village on September 30th. Those interested can register online at http://www.ebbc.org//in dex.php?q=civicrm/event /info&reset=1&id=309.
by Lludmila Moran & Elizabeth Pimentel-Gopal of Nature Village
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Excerpts from the 2011-2012 TGIF Annual Report The 2011-2012 TGIF Annual Report is now published. Report features include:
Introduction
TGIF Committee
Grant Selection Process
2012 TGIF Grant Awards
Project Statuses as of June 30, 2012 Projects Completed during 2011-2012
Accomplishments from Continuing Projects: 2009 Funded Projects, 2010 Funded Projects, 2011 Funded Projects
Statement of Activity
Grants Activity FY08-FY12
Looking Forward: 2012-2013
Appendix 1: 2012 Abstract Submissions
Click here to read the full report.
The 2011-2012 academic year was a dynamic year for The Green Initiative Fund, filled with milestones reached and major program changes. The ASUC Auxiliary, and therefore TGIF, left Business and Administrative Services and joined the Division of Student Affairs under the Dean of Students. As of August 1, 2012, TGIF is a program within the LEAD Center, a unit of the ASUC Auxiliary in the Division of Student Affairs. April 2012 marked the 5th Anniversary of the passing of ASUC Bill 61a TGIF and the establishment of TGIF at UC Berkeley, while Summer Sessions 2012 marked the fifth year of collecting student fees for TGIF grants. To mark its fifth year and meet a goal set in the 2010-2011 Annual Report, the TGIF Committee updated the TGIF bylaws to reflect the changes in the TGIF program that have occurred since its last update in 2009. 2011-2012 also marked the fifth year that the TGIF Committee awarded grant funding, which was celebrated by the awarding of the most funding to the most projects in one grant year. Twenty-two TGIF project presented posters at the 9th Annual CACS Sustainability Summit and the TGIF program was represented at multiple regional and national conferences. TGIF Coordinator Katherine Walsh was selected to serve as the 2012 Staff Co-Chair of the Chancellor’s Advisory Committee on Sustainability and partnered with local non-profit Bay Area Green Tours on its 2011 Grant from the Chancellor’s Community Partnership Fund. The TGIF Committee voted in favor of adding an annual fall mini-grant program beginning fall semester 2012, to better serve interested applicants and award greater amounts of funding per year.
TGIF Grant Selection Process
Project Statuses as of June 30, 2012 36 Completed Projects 2011 Grant Awards- eight projects 2010 Grant Awards- eleven projects 2009 Grant Awards- six projects 2008 Grant Awards- eleven projects 35 Projects Continuing Projects 2012 Grant Awards - twenty-two projects 2011 Grant Awards - seven projects
Although the ending Total Balance for FY12 is greater than that of FY11, TGIF awarded significantly more grant money in FY12 (over $60,000 more), accomplishing its FY12 Finance Goal of awarding between $300-350,000 in grants. TGIF will continue expanding its grant award goals by awarding fall mini-grants for the first time in program history. The TGIF hopes to award up to $20,000 in amounts of $500-2,000 in Fall 2012. FY13 will be the last fiscal year of receiving fees of $5.50/student/semester. Beginning FY14, the fee will be raised to $6.00/student/ semester through FY17.
2010 Grant Awards – three projects 2009 Grant Awards - two projects 2008 Grant Awards - one project 3 Discontinued projects 2009 Grant Awards - two projects 2008 Grant Awards - one project* *Although we count Earth Week as one project funded in 2008, we consider it as five separate projects for the sake of “Completed Projects” and “In Progress Projects”. Earth Weeks 2009, 2010, 2011, and 2012 are completed and Earth Week 2013 is in progress.
2011-2012 Accomplishments from Selected TGIF Projects Compost Alliance
Installed composting and promoted waste reduction, recycling, and composting education in the following campus buildings: A&E, Barrows, Boalt, California Hall, Eshleman, Goldman School of Public Policy, Haas, Li Ka Shing, McLaugh-
lin, Mulford, Richmond Field Station, Sproul, Stanley, University Hall, Wurster.
Served as an educational resource for Cory, Durant, Sutardja Dai Halls, and International House (all buildings where composting was already well established).
Estimated that more than 18 tons of waste has been diverted from disposal in the landfills, and that 2,336 kilograms (kg) of CO₂E have been diverted from releasing into the atmosphere.
Next Steps: Compost Alliance received a 2012 TGIF grant to continue its efforts of institutionalizing compost within UC Berkeley campus buildings.
Green Cup Competition
18 fraternities and sororities competed in the Green Cup competition. Green Campus and Greening the Greeks educated sustainability chairs in each house on energy saving procedures, who then motivated members of their houses to save energy. 29,221.17 kWh of electricity and 667.33 Therms of natural gas were saved.
Houses were offered $200 sustainability retrofit budgets. 4 houses took advantage of these retrofits amounting to $807.58 spent.
Created baseline calculations for energy consumption based on the house's previous energy bills for the same two months.
The winning house was Fiji fraternity which saved 63.47% energy over their original baseline, followed by KA fraternity which received an honorable mention for 61.52% energy savings.
Green Cup presented at the 2012 Green Campus Energy Efficiency Summit and was awarded "Best Student Energy Efficiency Program" at the California Higher Education Sustainability Conference. View Green Cup's Best Practices presentation at CHESC 2012 here.
Next Steps: The Green Cup Team managed to save $4,932 from the TGIF grant, allowing the team to run a second competition in Fall 2012. The Green Cup Team will continue to collaborate with Greening the Greeks and be more proactive in assisting houses with their sustainability retrofits so that more Houses will use the available retrofit budgets.
Strawberry Creek Native Plant Nursery & Garden The nursery construction was completed in Spring 2011 and the demonstration garden has since been installed as an educational and recreational spot next to the nursery. Accomplished and on-going goals include: Maintaining a seed stock for restoring the creek’s riparian zone with native plants, preserving species endemic to Strawberry Creek, whose existence are threatened by the spread of invasive species, providing ecosystem services to the campus landscape, serving as an effective site for environmental education. Cal Student Restoration Leaders taught a DeCAL and hosted many classes, clubs and day camps such as Berkeley High School classes and Kids for the Bay summer camp sessions at the nursery. A conservative estimate of the number of students utilizing the nursery and garden as a classroom would be about 100 students per semester. Next Steps: The Nursery is presently being used by ESPM grad and undergrad students as part of 2012 TGIF Grant “Filling the Weed-Shaped Hole”, studying the characteristics of native and non-native vegetation and the suitability of these plants for use in local habitat restoration. This year’s production of 600 seedlings has been saved for the 20122013 rainy season due to the extremely dry December & January 2011-2012.
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OCTOBER 2012– SUSTAINABILITY EVENTS
Sun
Mon
Tue
Wed
Thu
1 DUE
2
3 FILM
4 WKSHP 5
6 FILM
A Silent Forest, 7:30pm
Home Energy Efficiency, 6pm
Terra Blight, 6pm
TGIF MiniGrants by 5pm
7 FILM
8
Genetic Roulette, 1pm
14
15
Fri
9 PANEL 10 EVENT 11 WKSHP 12 Energy and the Election, 6pm
Eat It! Food Waste and What You Can Do About It, 6:30pm
Lighting for Human Factors & Energy Efficiency, 9am
16
17
18
AASHE CONFERENCE, LOS ANGELES 10/14-10/17
13 Harvest Festival, 10am
19 EVENT 20 EVENT
CACS General BERC Energy Meeting, 3:30pm Symposium, BERC Innovation Expo, 6pm
Leadership Symposium, 9am
Sat
9am
Just Food: Celebrating Locally Grown, 4:30pm
21 WKSHP 22
23 WKSHP 24 EVENT 25
26 SPEAKER 27
Survival Essentials, 10am
From Lightbulbs to Legislation: Climate Change Series
From Extraction to Combustion, 2pm
28 WKSHP 29
30 EVENT 31 SPEAKER
Vermicomposting, 4pm
Food Justice/ Urban Farms, 7:30pm
UC Berkeley Food Day, details TBA
Wetlands and Adaptation to Climate Change, 1pm
The Green Initiative Fund (TGIF) provides funding for projects that reduce UC Berkeley's negative impact on the environment and make UC Berkeley more sustainable. TGIF allocates funds to projects that promote sustainable modes of transportation, increase energy and water efficiency, restore habitat, promote environmental and food justice, and reduce the amount of waste created by UC Berkeley. Portions of the fund also support education & behavior change initiatives, student aid (via return to aid), and student internships. Students, faculty, and staff may submit project proposals, which will be selected for funding by an annually appointed grant-making committee (TGIF Committee), consisting of students, faculty, and staff, on which the students have the majority vote. TGIF is funded by a $5.50 per semester student fee, beginning in the fall of 2007 and persisting for 10 years. Student leaders created a massive and successful campus campaign, and the fee referendum was approved by the student body during the April 2007 elections of the Associated Students of the University of California. It received final approval by the Chancellor and UC Regents during the summer of 2007.
Katherine Walsh Coordinator kwalsh@berkeley.edu 510-643-2992
University of California, Berkeley LEAD Center, Hearst Gym 102 Berkeley, CA 94720-4500 tgif_info@berkeley.edu
Visit us on the web! Website: http://tgif.berkeley.edu Blog: http://tgifberkeley.com/blog/ Facebook Page “The Green Initiative Fund (TGIF)� Twitter @TGIF_UCB
2011-2012 TGIF Committee VOTING MEMBERS
NON-VOTING MEMBERS
Administration: Kira Stoll ASUC: Jacqueline Hsu CACS: Brynn Cook Facilities Services: Kevin Ng Faculty: John Chiang Graduate Assembly: Daniel Riffe Student-At-Large: TBA
Committee on Student Fees: Conner Nanni ASUC Senator: Megan Majd Office of Sustainability: Lisa McNeilly Ex-Officio: Judy Chess TGIF: Katherine Walsh
IMPORTANT TGIF DEADLINES Mini-Grant Application due (1st Opportunity): Monday, October 1, 2012 by 5pm Mini-Grant Application due (2nd Opportunity): Monday, November 19, 2012 by 5pm Spring Early Abstract Submissions due: Friday, January 25, 2013 by 5pm Spring Final Abstract Submissions due: Friday, February 15, 2013 by 5pm Spring Grant Applications due: Monday, April 1, 2013 by 5pm Visit the Apply & Forms page for application materials.