Apply for Funding

Selection Process

Interested in applying for a TGIF Mini-grant (Fall Semester) or TGIF Grant (Spring Semester)?

Fall Mini-Grant: Up to $5,000 in funding for smaller sustainability projects.
Spring Grant: A two-part application process offering funding in any amount over $5,000 for larger sustainability projects.
Brian Gialketsis SERQueer Scholarship: This scholarship, named in honor of our former TGIF Coordinator Brian Gialketsis, awards $1,000-$5,000 for up to five LGBTQIA+-identifying students who are interested in environmentalism.
Travel and Event Fund: Offers funding for student’s non-research-focused travel, events, and conferences with the goal of student-oriented professional and academic development. The Travel and Event Fund will be available Fall of 2021.

Fall Minigrant Cycle The Fall Minigrant awards up to $5,000.00 to projects, and is aimed towards small sustainability projects which aim for completion within the academic year. It has a single application form, which can be found on our “Apply!” page.
Spring Grant Cycle This grant cycle awards over $5,000.00 to projects. It’s aimed for long-term, large-scale projects, with a two-stage application process. The first stage consists of abstracts submitted by applicants, including an optional early abstract submission. After the TGIF Committee reviews these abstracts, some projects will be invited to the second stage to submit full applications. Abstract and application forms, sample abstracts, and deadlines can all be found on our “Apply!” page.

  • Spring Early Abstract: This optional deadline allows prospective applicants to submit a draft of their abstract and receive feedback from the TGIF Committee, before submitting their final abstract. If you choose to submit an abstract by this deadline, you will be given a chance to edit and submit your abstract by the later deadline after receiving feedback.
  • Spring Final Abstract: All prospective applicants must submit an abstract of their project. This is a brief (less than 2 pages) document consisting primarily of a budget, brief project summary, and statement of intent to address environmental inequities, if applicable. Further details can be found on the “Apply!” page.
  • Spring Application Deadline: Projects whose abstracts were selected by the TGIF Committee will be invited to complete a more in-depth application to receive funding for their project. These applications go into further detail regarding budget, timeline, and project goals.

Application Deadlines, along with the grant applications, can be found on our “Apply!” page. This page will have the most updated information for the upcoming application cycle.

Grant Applications, alongside application deadlines, can be found on our “Apply!” page. This page will have the most updated information for the upcoming application cycle.

- All UC Berkeley students, staff, and faculty can apply to receive a grant.
- All projects must be in some way related to sustainability on the UC Berkeley campus or UC Berkeley community, or in the capacity that on-campus activities influence sustainability off campus. All proposed projects must have a clearly defined, measurable outcome.

If you are still unsure whether your project is eligible for TGIF funding, we highly recommend you attend one of our semesterly Info Sessions! We will be posting announcements about these sessions on our social media pages. Otherwise, please feel free to reach out to us at tgif_grants@berkeley.edu!

If your project seeks to address some aspect of environmental inequity, we highly recommend you request consideration as an environmental justice project. Denoting such on your application will give you priority consideration for funding as the Committee reviews applications. Additional application questions may be necessary for EJ projects as stated in the applications.

Projects are selected by the student-majority TGIF Committee, which is composed of UC Berkeley students, staff, and faculty. Preference is given to:

  • Projects that demonstrate the greatest reduction in UC Berkeley’s environmental impact for the least cost.
  • Projects with high visibility.
  • Projects with strong student involvement. A minimum of 20% of funds disbursed will be set aside for projects with direct student involvement.
  • Projects centered on reducing harmful environmental impacts and/or improving sustainable living for underserved, marginalized, or underrepresented communities.
  • Proposals coming from student organizations and campus departments with a focus on social equity and/or environmental justice; or those proposals that support underrepresented or marginalized students.
The Committee uses a score sheet rubric to vote on the grant applications and select recipients for grant awards. Scoresheet Rubric can be found here.