Curriculum and Research
The Sustainability, Equity, & Justice Fund Grant Program promotes sustainability by providing grants to create and implement projects that positively impact environmental, social, health, and economic practices on our campus and in our community.
Sustainable Office Certification Toolkit
Amount Awarded: $4,840.50
Academic Year: 2022-2023
Implementation: Active, Spring 2023 - ongoing
Full Application: Link
Categories: Built Environment Campus and Community Engagement Curriculum and Research Procurement Waste
This Sustainable Office Certification is a program housed within the Sustainability Engagement Institute that helps offices and departments in becoming certified as sustainable offices. It is a comprehensive certification process open to all offices, departments, organizations, and colleges on Western’s campus. It’s a way for these entities to contribute directly to the sustainability goals outlined in Western’s Strategic Plan and the Sustainability Action Plan, and to take action in strengthening Western’s role as a leader in sustainability in the Pacific Northwest.
The program provides recipients with the physical materials needed to realistically meet the goals stipulated in the broader certification. It ensures that the entities that have become certified can continue their sustainable practices without having to shoulder the financial burden of properly equipping their work areas with necessary materials. When offices are properly and wholly certified, they can inspire other people in the Western community to do their part in implementing effective behavioral changes in their own lives.
Campus Micromobility Counters
Amount Awarded: $99,185.00
Academic Year: 2022-2023
Implementation: Active, Spring 2023 – Fall 2023
Full Application: Link
Categories: Built Environment Curriculum and Research Transportation
Micromobility can be defined as any transportation using lightweight vehicles, such as bicycles, scooters, and other electric or people-powered devices. As transportation has one of the highest impacts on our planet, these devices can help drastically reduce the impact of getting people where they need to go in both direct emissions and the impact of land uses designed for cars.
This grant funded the installation of three micromobility counters on major bike routes on WWU’s campus in an effort to collect data on micromobility ridership. This will allow campus and regional planners, as well as decision makers, to have the data necessary to understand current use patterns and determine how changes over time to programming and infrastructure can affect ridership. Additionally, data from this project will be available to the general public and can be used for educational purposes in planning and data analysis classes and Western and other institutions.
The counters would also have visual displays so that the Western community would clearly see how many people use micromobility devices to get around on campus on a daily basis. The hope is that these displays allow riders to see the positive impact of riding a micromobility device, as well as to encourage others to participate.
Advancing the Morse Leadership Institute’s (MLI) Community Engagement Project Program
Amount Awarded: $35,000
Academic Year: 2022-2023
Implementation: Spring 2023 - ongoing
Full Application: Link
Categories: Campus and Community Engagement Curriculum and Research
The mission of the Morse Leadership Institute (MLI) is to develop student leaders who can work collaboratively and inclusively with others by honoring diverse leadership values, styles, and perspectives, which can result in more equitable solutions and communities. It is the value of MLI to provide a variety of support mechanisms and opportunities for students across Western’s campus to develop as leaders. These include a broad spectrum of leadership studies courses, applied and global leadership opportunities, community engagement, peer and professional mentoring, support for students’ participation in academic conferences and professional development opportunities, and campus events and programs.
Over the years, students in leadership courses have developed and implemented several community engagement projects (CEPs) at Western and in the Whatcom community. The CEP program has become a series of four legacy projects that different students lead each quarter with the intention of long-term, sustainable change. The projects address solutions such as Nooksack restoration, trans advocacy, menstrual health advocacy, and nature and mental health.
This grant helped fund the creation of a couple of student employment positions within MLI, support an investment in materials needed to run the program on a quarterly basis, and allow for students and faculty to attend the International Leadership Association conference in Vancouver, BC, during fall of 2023.
Growth, Resilience, and Belonging: Strengthening membership and experiences for Black and Brown Men at WWU
Amount Awarded: $28,000.00
Academic Year: 2022-2023
Implementation: March 2023
Full Application: Link
Categories: Campus and Community Engagement Curriculum and Research Student Life
With the funding of this grant students from WWU’s Black and Brown Male Success Collective (BBMSC) were able to attend the Men of Color National Summit at Clemson University. The 2-day leadership conference (March 28-29th) included workshops and dialogues that emphasize the importance of education, best practices, and choices to increase high school and college graduation rates among men of color. The attendance of this summit by WWU’s students enhanced their overall college experience by providing them the opportunity to hear and learn from successful men of color across various industries and allow them to network.
The Men’s Resiliency Program founded the Black & Brown Male Success Collective during the 2019-2020 academic year. This research-based program is designed to engage male-identifying students from historically marginalized communities with academic success, exploring masculinity, community service learning, and cross-cultural identity development.
Washington Oregon Higher Education Sustainability Conference (WOHESC) 2023 Scholarships
Amount Awarded: $7,682.00
Academic Year: 2022-2023
Implementation: March 2023
Full Application: Link
Categories: Curriculum and Research Student Life
This project provided up to 13 students the opportunity to attend the Washington Oregon Higher Education Sustainability Conference (WOHESC), that took place March 6th through March 8th, 2023, at Oregon State University. The conference offered critical opportunities to engage with, and learn from, a diverse set of speakers/participants on a variety of sustainability topics such as student leadership, decarbonization, green spaces, ways to procure funding, sustainable design, program implementation strategies, and much more that could translate to positive change on Western’s campus.
WOHESC is the premier regional campus sustainability conference. The topics discussed throughout the conference focused on regional political, social, economic, and environmental issues with an emphasis on creating strong connections between campuses throughout Washington, Oregon, and British Columbia. After students returned from the conference, they shared what they learned with the broader campus community through a Sustainability Roundtable event on campus.
LEAD Reforestation Demonstration Project
Amount Awarded: $7,682.00
Academic Year: 2022-2023
Implementation: March 2023
Full Application: Link
Categories: Curriculum and Research Student Life
This project provided up to 13 students the opportunity to attend the Washington Oregon Higher Education Sustainability Conference (WOHESC), that took place March 6th through March 8th, 2023, at Oregon State University. The conference offered critical opportunities to engage with, and learn from, a diverse set of speakers/participants on a variety of sustainability topics such as student leadership, decarbonization, green spaces, ways to procure funding, sustainable design, program implementation strategies, and much more that could translate to positive change on Western’s campus.
WOHESC is the premier regional campus sustainability conference. The topics discussed throughout the conference focused on regional political, social, economic, and environmental issues with an emphasis on creating strong connections between campuses throughout Washington, Oregon, and British Columbia. After students returned from the conference, they shared what they learned with the broader campus community through a Sustainability Roundtable event on campus.