Distinguished Award Winner - First-place award-winning team receives $35,000, in addition to $5,000 Seed Grant
Ocupação Anchieta, an area located in the Grajaú district, southwest of São Paulo, Brazil, where a lack of proper waste management threatens the water supply and the health of the community. Initially, the student team developed sustainable land stewardship strategies, including support to create a multipurpose cultural and educational center to engage community members.
The additional $35K will support communications efforts, including a website and dissemination of a publication promoting resilient communities to improve the quality of life for area residents. The team will focus on the development of a cluster of housing prototypes. The housing cluster will be connected to a sewage biodigester. The team will also implement landscape practices to address storm water management.
To foster high-impact sustainability collaborations across U-M, Dow Distinguished Awards for Sustainability supports applied sustainability projects across all disciplines and includes students at all academic levels. Projects are student-led, faculty advised, and action-oriented, outlining a new product, service, or project to protect the environment and enhance the quality of life for present and future generations. Projects span the full breadth of sustainability topics, including but not limited to energy, water, communities, food, built environment, transportation, etc. The Distinguished Awards is part of the Dow Sustainability Fellows Program at the University of Michigan, supported by The Dow Chemical Company Foundation.
Learn More: Distinguished Awards