Waste
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.
Furniture Fest & Couchella
Amount Awarded: $22,497.96
Academic Year: 2022-2023
Implementation: Summer 2023 – Summer 2024
Full Application: Link
Categories: Campus and CommunityEngagement Student Life Waste
Furniture Fest is a program aimed at combating furniture waste that accumulates in the spring when students start moving out of their off-campus housing by collecting furniture, refurbishing it, and redistributing it out to future students, free of charge.
The ultimate goal of this grant was to provide support in institutionalizing Furniture Fest as a permanent program on campus. The team first applied for funding in the 2021-2022 academic year, and after a wildly successful summer, applied again to keep this project going for two more years as they begin to look for permanent funding.
The project offers students many opportunities like student employment, an outlet where they can donate and/or receive furniture, and an event named “Couchella” where students can obtain furniture while enjoying live music, games, food, and learning about the many sustainable focused clubs offered at Western and in Bellingham.