| Overall Rating | Gold |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 77.56 |
| Liaison | John Pumilio |
| Submission Date | Oct. 11, 2022 |
Colgate University
IN-40: Sustainability Projects Fund
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
0.50 / 0.50 |
John
Pumilio Director of Sustainability Sustainability Office |
Name of the institution’s sustainability projects fund:
Which of the following best describes the primary source of funding for the sustainability projects fund?:
Year the institution’s sustainability projects fund was established:
A brief description of the institution’s sustainability projects fund:
In September 2012, the university created the Sustainability and Climate Action Reserve with an initial investment of $365,500. Another $85,000 was contributed by the university the following year. In FY 2013, the reserve funded a lighting upgrade project in Sanford Field House that cost $275,000 and invested in Lucid's Building OS energy/water monitoring system that cost another $16,400. In 2017, the reserve spent $45,000 to purchase custom-made recycling stations to place in key buildings on campus. By the end of Fiscal Year 2017, the reserve had a balance of $180,000.
In 2017, Colgate University approved the Bicentennial Plan for a Sustainable and Carbon Neutral Campus. One of the key recommendations in the plan was to create a green revolving loan fund at Colgate University. In 2018, the Sustainability and Climate Action Reserve officially became the Green Revolving Loan Fund with an additional investment by the university of $800,000. Altogether, the university has contributed over $1.25 million to get the Green Revolving Loan Fund established.
A brief description of the multi-stakeholder decision-making process used to determine which projects receive funding through the sustainability projects fund:
Members of the campus community may propose a project to the Sustainability Council that will measurably reduce the university’s carbon footprint and general ecological impact. The Sustainability Council is comprised of Professors, Administrative Assistants, Program Coordinators, Department Directors, Students, and many more groups of individuals.
Proposals will be evaluated based on:
Specific environmental benefits such as resource conservation or greenhouse gas reduction, ability to measure or estimate outcomes, ability to identify resultant savings and repay the fund, normally within four years, with a maximum payback period of ten years, cost-effectiveness metrics such as greenhouse reduction per dollar of capital cost, potential for community education, engagement, and collaboration.
Up to 10 percent of fund can be allocated to projects that don’t have a payback, such as the installation of resource metering.
If a proposal is approved, the revolving fund finances the cost of the upgrades as a loan. The savings from a project’s implementation repay the loan, plus 20 percent, thereby growing the overall pool of money to fund future projects.
Website URL where information about the sustainability projects fund is available:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
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