FAQ

TGIF was established in spring/summer 2007, thanks to a campus-wide campaign from a group of UC Berkeley students who had heard about the TGIF program at UC Santa Barbara. The TGIF Campaign team successfully put a referendum on the spring 2007 ASUC (student government) elections, and TGIF passed with 69% of votes in favor of the program. The UC Berkeley Chancellor and UC Regents approved TGIF in the summer of 2007 and TGIF began collecting student fees fall 2007.

Students again led a campaign in the 2015-16 school year to renew TGIF as a program. They wrote a renewal referendum, and, with a 68% “YES” vote from the student population, successfully renewed TGIF through 2027.

Yes, you can view them here.

Currently, the fee is $10/semester/student, with 1/3 of the fee returning to financial aid.

The fee is mandatory. Per UC Office of the President policy on student fees, a 1/3 of each student’s TGIF fee is automatically given to student financial aid, so TGIF actually receives 2/3 of the fee.

No, TGIF is a campus green fund. TGIF does offer a loan option, and the TGIF Committee determines whether or not a project receives a grant or a loan. TGIF does not usually require projects to pay back the grant. TGIF awarded its first “loan” during the 2013 Fall Mini-Grant cycle to the Berkeley Student Food Collective (BSFC).

In 2015-2016, the UC Berkeley student body voted to continue TGIF for another 10 years, after which point students will have to vote to either end or continue the TGIF program.

The TGIF Committee. TGIF’s Committee is the decision-making body for The Green Initiative Fund. The Committee chooses which projects receive money, approves changes to awards, and guides the general direction of TGIF.

TGIF’s Committee has seven voting members and five non-voting members. Students have the majority vote.

Voting Members:

  • One graduate student appointed by the President, Campus Affairs Vice President (CAVP), or Vice President of Finance (VPF) of the Graduate Assembly (GA)
  • One undergraduate student appointed by the Associated Students of the University of California (ASUC)
  • One student with a background in environmental justice selected by TGIF’s Committee after the other five members have been selected. This position is open to all undergraduate and graduate students via a student at-large application
  • One undergraduate student, selected by TGIF’s Committee after the other five members have been selected. This position is open to all undergraduate students via a student at-large application
  • One faculty member approved by the Academic Senate
  • One staff member from Administration, selected by the Vice Chancellor of Administration
  • One staff member from Capital Strategies, selected by the Director of Capital Strategies
  • Non-Voting Members

The campus Director of Sustainability, the Director of Capital Planning, a member of the Committee on Student Fees (CSF), and the Director of the Student Environmental Resource Center (SERC), shall attend Committee meetings as non-voting Members, and the Committee shall invite experts/guests to provide information and expertise as needed.

As of fall 2013, TGIF is a program offered by the Student Environmental Resource Center (SERC). SERC is a department within the Dean of Students (DOS) and Division of Student Affairs (SA) at UC Berkeley.  TGIF must write and make public an annual report on its programmatic and financial activities each year. TGIF must also submit an annual student fee report to the Committee on Student Fees (CSF).

Yes. The TGIF Program has one staff Coordinator position (the TGIF & Sustainability Initiatives Coordinator) that is 1.0 FTE SERC. The TGIF Coordinator reports to the SERC Director and to the TGIF Committee.
TGIF also has 2 TGIF Program Associates who are student staff. You can learn more about the Coordinator and Associates positions on the TGIF Team page.

All UC Berkeley students, staff, and faculty can apply for TGIF grants.

Prospective applicants can apply for TGIF grants during the fall and spring semesters. TGIF offers a fall mini-grant program and a spring grant program. The mini-grant cycle is a one-stage process, while the spring grant cycle is a two-stage process (abstract and application).

TGIF is able to award between $250,000-$350,000 per year; TGIF awards funding based on the quality of a project and does not have a “use it or lose it” clause. Unawarded funding automatically rolls over into the following year’s budget. You can view more details about the annual TGIF budget on our Annual Budget and Reports page.

TGIF categorizes its grant projects in the following 8 sustainability themes (but accepts sustainability projects outside these specific themes): Education & Behavior Change, Energy Conservation & Efficiency, Food Justice & Sustainability, Environmental Justice, Habitat Restoration, Transportation, Water Conservation & Efficiency, Waste Reduction.

The requirements of a TGIF grant project can be found on our Develop Your Grant page.

230 projects, as of Spring 2019.

There have been 172 TGIF-funded projects completed since 2008. 9 projects have been discontinued.

There are 58 TGIF projects in progress.

Yes. Project Leaders of all TGIF grant awards are required to attend a training prior to receiving their funds. During this training, staff reviews all TGIF project expectations, reporting requirements, and project timelines. The results of the projects’ efforts can be found on the Overview page.

Yes. As of Spring 2019, TGIF has funded 408 paid student internships related to our projects.

Email tgif_info@berkeley.edu with any questions, feedback, or concerns.