The Green Fund

Giving to the Chancellor's Green Campus Fund (CGCF, the "Green Fund") enables members of the UC Berkeley campus community to undertake projects that will create a greener, more environmentally sustainable campus -- while saving resources and money in the process.

At the annual UC Berkeley Sustainability Summit, the Green Fund provides one-time funding to projects led by students, faculty and staff which help move Cal toward environmental sustainability. This funding is given on a competitive basis, and many projects are proposed based on the opportunities identified in the 2005 Campus Sustainability Assessment.

Currently, funding is limited to $10,000 per project, but as the Green Fund grows, this limit will be raised to fund larger projects. In addition to providing grants, the CGCF also functions as a revolving loan fund. Sustainability projects that will generate revenue for the campus through resource conservation are given loans. These green loans will be repaid to the campus, for instance, by decreasing the Cal's energy expenditure.

Other universities have developed highly successful revolving loan funds, and the CGCF could be an extremely profitable investment in UC Berkeley. For instance, the Harvard Green Campus Loan Fund currently saves its campus $4,000,000 annually with an average return on investment (ROI) of 35%.

In the Spring of 2007, Cal students sent a strong message in favor of campus sustainability when 69% of voters chose to create The Green Initiative Fund (TGIF), pending administrative approval. This Fund will be sustained through 2017 by a $5 per student per semester fee, and its mission is fully complementary to the CGCF. If you want to support the student sustainability commitment, the Green Fund is your chance to help green UC Berkeley!

The CGCF was created with generous support from former Chancellor Robert M. Berdahl in 2004, and it enjoys continued support from current Chancellor Robert Birgeneau. The Chancellor's Advisory Committee on Sustainability (CACS) selects Green Fund projects annually, and the Office of Environment, Health & Safety and the Berkeley Environmental Alumni Network (BEAN) help with CGCF administration.

==> Give to the Green Fund