2018 Sustainability Innovation and Engagement Fund Awards Announced

Sustainability fund logo

Seven projects have been awarded funding from the Sustainability Innovation and Engagement Fund (SIEF), which provides students, faculty and staff with the financial support to make their sustainability project a reality.

The 2018 round of grants, totaling $23,500, funded these projects:

  • SGA iClicker loaner program: Nancy Symmes (student), startup funds for iClicker program that will reduce waste and provide loaner iClickers to students.
  • Carbon farming: Lisa DePiano (faculty), funding to cover start-up costs for establishing a 2-acre forested plot at the Agriculture Learning Center for studying the use of integrated sheep grazing in a chestnut tree grove that provides both a nut crop and carbon sequestration.
  • Shalia water filter: Marzia Maliha and Megha Shah (students), funding for prototyping of a low-cost bioplastic water filter that can be mass produced and used in developing countries to increase access to clean water.
  • Paperbark: Lauren de la Parra (graduate student), funds to support the printing of the first issue of Paperbark literary magazine.
  • CSA share subsidy project: Kayleigh Boucher (student) and Amanda Brown (faculty), funding to provide 25 discounted UMass CSA Farmshares for low-income community members.
  • Food donation initiative: Alex White (student), funding for an initiative to recover and donate unwanted/almost expired food to homeless shelter/soup kitchens.
  • Sewing project: Yulia Suvorova (student), funds to purchase sewing equipment and materials to help train students on how to reuse or repair damaged or used clothing.