Fall 2012 Blue Goes Green Student Grants Awarded

The Utah State University Student Sustainability Office has awarded $20,946.10 in Blue Goes Green Student Grant funds for fall 2012. That funding will be paired with $27,359.24 in in-kind and cash support from both campus and community sources.

The Blue Goes Green student grant committee reviewed student proposals on Nov. 13, 2012. The committee is composed of a student representative from each of the eight USU colleges, a staff member of the SSO, the chair of the Utah State University Sustainability Council, the USU Department of Environment and Society Sustainable Communities Extension Specialist and a representative from USU Facilities.

The five student proposals that were recently awarded funding by the Blue Goes Green Student Grant include:

• Emily Blake (College of Natural Resources), Chris Binder (College of Natural Resources), and Crista Sorenson (College of Agriculture) were awarded $5,000 to construct a new bicycle rack outside the Taggart Student Center in partnership with USU Facilities.
• David Smith (Emma Eccles Jones College of Education and Human Services) was awarded $10,000 for the development of a long-term USU Campus Recreation and Open Space Master Plan.
• Trent Morrison (College of Humanities and Social Sciences) was awarded $881.10 to implement the Greeks Go Green project that will increase and monitor recycling in Greek organization homes through education and purchase of recycling bins.
• Ethan DeVilbiss (Quinney College Natural Resources) was awarded $4,300 for the Little Blue Goes Greenhouse. This project will involve elementary students and USU student volunteers in the development of a greenhouse with a raised-bed organic vegetable garden at Edith Bowen Laboratory School. It will also implement an organic agriculture education program into Little Blue Goes Green After School program.
• Chris Binder (College of Natural Resources) was awarded $765 for the purchase of a bicycle trailer that will be available to rent free of charge at Aggie Blue Bikes.

The Blue Goes Green student grant is funded through the Blue Goes Green Fee, a $0.25/credit hour fee that USU students voted to approve in February 2011. The Blue Goes Green grant gives every student on the Logan campus the opportunity to apply for a grant and implement a sustainability project on campus.

During its first year of existence the Blue Goes Green Student Grant Program awarded a total of $29,423.57 for seven grants to USU students that were matched with $43,310 in in-kind and cash support from both on and off campus sources.

Questions can be directed to the Student Sustainability Office at sso@usu.edu.

Related link:

USU Student Sustainability Office

Contact: Sean Damitz, Student Sustainability Office, (435) 797-8134, sean.damitz@usu.edu