Spring Grants

These projects were funded during our Spring grant cycle, where projects receive more than $5,000 for projects that take between one to three years to complete. 

Decade II BSFC

Project Description

Over the past decade, the Berkeley Student Food Collective (BSFC) has served as a consistent and accessible source of affordable, healthy, and sustainably-sourced food for the Berkeley community. The BSFC is ready and eager to move into its second decade of operations: but its ability to further serve students will hinge upon critical updates to its retail storefront and staffing model. With the help of TGIF, the BSFC will be able to move forward with these key changes, allowing the organization to both scale and expand its work...

The Team Editorial Program at the Leaflet

Project Description

The Team Editorial Program at The Leaflet was founded to increase environmental discourse on the UC Berkeley campus. By expanding the content reach, operational capacity, and professional development efforts of The Leaflet, one of the only environmental publications in the UC system, the Team Editorial Program allows the publication to increase environmental education, storytelling, and conversation at UC Berkeley.

Project Links...

Land Use Working Group Year II

Project Description

Campus land use decisions are structured through campus planning documents, namely the Landscape Master Plan and the Long Range Development Plan (LRDP). The Campus Sustainability Plan also includes language related to development of the physical campus. Case by case decisions are made by campus administration including planners, the campus landscape architect, and the campus architect. These plans have been written with commitments to environmental sustainability, but lack social sustainability elements such as equity and...

Environmental Education for Students of Color

Project Description

This grant application primarily aims for a renewal of this grant to launch SCECon 2020. The secondary aspect of this application is a proposal to fund an outdoor retreat for students of color. The first objective is necessary to diversifying environmental education that students of color receive on this campus at a level that is immediately feasible, inspiring, and desperately needed. This project will be aiming to foster an intersectional environmental movement by hosting a conference that inspires and empowers...

Valley Life Sciences Building (VLSB) Native Plant Restoration

Project Description

The Essig Museum and UCB Entomology Club propose to revitalize areas around the Valley Life Science Building with native vegetation. Currently many areas are covered by wood chip mulch where grass lawn was removed during the prolonged drought. As high visibility areas along major walkways, these revitalized landscapes will improve the aesthetic appearance of campus with flowering plants, minimize water usage by choosing locally adapted species, provide forage and habitat for native insects and birds, and provide educational...

Amplifying Sanctuary Voices: Climate Migration and Environmental Justice

Project Description

Amplifying Sanctuary Voices (ASV) is a storytelling project centered around migrant communities in the Bay Area. We believe that informed public discourse on immigration and climate change that centers the people whose lives are most affected is essential to promoting empathy, connected communities, and civic participation. ASV uses arts-based, trauma-informed methods to promote resiliency and healing for narrators and shares stories of migration to promote action for more fair immigration policies.

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Resilient Sustainability Community Fellows

Project Description

This Spring, the COVID- 19 global pandemic has radically shifted seniors’ last semesters at UC Berkeley and will most likely affect the career opportunities and job availability after graduation in the sustainability community. This project hopes to provide up to seven (7) post-baccalaureate fellowships.

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Berkeley Moves! Carpool

Project Description

The UC Berkeley Parking & Transportation Berkeley Moves! Alternative Transportation Unit provides active and alternative transportation solutions to the entire Cal community. P&T will be testing the use and need for carsharing to the students, primarily those who are in need, through the use of subsidizing memberships and/or driving credits.

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Reducing the Impact of Chemical Education

Project Description

In 2016, our General Chemistry course series underwent an unprecedented redesign. In addition to fully integrating green chemistry learning goals into both the majors and non-majors series, we also made steps toward reducing the environmental impact of the course through lower student preparation volumes, elimination of hazardous chemicals, and using renewable resources where possible.

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Cal Enviro Water Treatment

Project Description

Cal Environmental Team (Cal Enviro) is a Civil and Environmental Engineering (CEE) competition team and DeCal. Our mission is to impart the fundamentals of wastewater treatment and sustainable engineering design, provide hands-on laboratory and construction experience, and opportunities for students to improve their public speaking and technical writing skills.

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