Campus Sustainability Fund

Carolyn Hartman has worked diligently to promote environmental education and campus sustainability in numerous leadership capacities throughout her time at UW.

Update 4/18: The Salvage Wood Program was named one of the seven 2016 Husky Green Award winners.

The Salvage Wood Program at the University of Washington is working to make sure any trees which need to be removed on campus can have a second life.

The program, run by Grounds Management and made possible by a Campus Sustainability Fund grant and help from the UW chapter of Engineers Without Borders, turns those removed trees into lumber for projects on campus such as benches and tables.

For 40 years, the University of Washington's Manastash Ridge Observatory near Ellensburg has been home to countless research projects studying our vast universe. Now, it’s working on incorporating environmental sustainability into the mix.

"It’s time to make changes that reflect the use of the facility and our impact on natural resources, particularly our water and energy consumption," said Oliver Fraser, UW astronomy lecturer.

The Campus Sustainability Fund (CSF) is hosting an evening of interdisciplinary discussion and project brainstorming. CSF representatives will share information on the fund, and how students can apply for grants to make their environmental ideas a reality on campus, as well as brainstorming ideas for projects. The goal of the event is to engage the campus community in brainstorming sustainability improvements we want to see at UW, and moreover, to empower students to make an impact by applying for a grant and starting their own project!

What was once a bustling sawmill in the late 1800s is now home to more than 100 species of birds, turtles, ducks, and even a beaver family.

I’m talking about Yesler Swamp, one of the few true swamps remaining in Seattle and a unique part of Washington’s vanishing urban forest. It’s hidden in a grove of trees just east of the UW Center for Urban Horticulture, remaining a fairly unknown public area to this day.

You may not have noticed, but as you walk around the UW campus more of those plants and flowers at your feet are species native to Puget Sound.

That’s because UW’s Society for Ecology Restoration student guild (SER-UW) native plant nursery has been working to restore areas on campus by increasing native species biodiversity and creating open spaces for students to engage with the natural world just steps from their residence halls. 

By Tiffany Loh
This post was originally published on the Campus Sustainability Fund site.

Earlier this year, the CSF awarded a grand total of $105,367 to 6 projects in the first round of funding for 2015. One of the projects proposed innovative adjustments that would optimize the use of a gift Mother Nature likes to shower upon Seattle: rainwater. 

Dr. Linda Steg, an environmental psychologist and a respected scholar, author and professor at the University of Groningen in The Netherlands, will discuss "How to inspire people to engage in pro-environmental actions" on May 26 at Alder Hall.

The lecture will touch on what values are likely to promote pro-environmental actions, and how to activate values that increase the liklihood of sustainable choices. The evening will begin with a reception at 5 p.m. and the talk will begin at 6 p.m.

Photo: (Left) Co-creator of ReThink Will Fantle and (Right) Vice President Gracie Dahl

A trip to Israel sparked a UW student's dream to leave a mark on the environment.

"There was a full moon, a massive brilliant orb, and stars everywhere,” said Will Fantle, co-creator of ReThink, a UW club focused on business sustainability. “They took us out in silence and told us to go find a spot in the desert. We sat out there for what felt like hours. I just lay there looking up at the stars thinking about what I wanted to do with my life."

The UW Chapter of the Society for Ecological Restoration teamed up with the UW Carpentry Fabrication Shop to transform a dead cedar tree on campus into a bench where the UW community can enjoy the surroundings of the restored forest.