Attention sustainability minded students. If you have an idea for "greening" the University of Michigan campus that you'd like to see funded for implementation, then the Planet Blue Student Innovation Fund (PBSIF) student board invites you to submit your optional concept or "intent to apply" between October 23 and Nov. 27, 2013, with a full proposal due by Jan. 15, 2014.
Announced by President Mary Sue Coleman in the fall of 2010 as part of her larger campus sustainability address, the Planet Blue Student Innovation Fund offers grants of up to $50,000 annually for projects that reduce the university’s environmental footprint and/or promote a culture of sustainability on campus.
The Graham Institute administers this large-scale grants program, which offers grants of up to $50,000 in annual funding for ambitious, student-initiated projects that reduce the university’s environmental footprint and/or promote a culture of sustainability on campus. A PBSIF student board makes decisions about which projects are selected for funding.
Several PBSIF projects have taken off, including a reusable food container program at the Michigan Union’s U-Club; bike air pumps and fix-it stations on campus; on-campus produce stands; and a campus farm at U-M’s Botanical Gardens. This past year, a student team took the concept of a campus farm even further by creating permaculture gardens on North Campus. These permaculture satellite gardens are a natural extension of UMSFP that brings aspects of gardening and the campus farm closer to campus.
This marks the third year for this innovative program. Please click here to learn more.