University of Vermont
EN-3: Student Life

Alternative Energy Racing Organization (AERO) Club that works for the advocacy, research and development of alternative energy drive systems. They are committed to finding technological solutions to address our society’s dependency on non-renewable energy sources and to apply their education to this purpose. http://www.uvmaero.org/

Enactus is a community of student leaders committed to using the power of entrepreneurial action to transform lives and shape a better, more sustainable world. They do this through community service projects throughout Burlington and surrounding areas. https://thelynx.collegiatelink.net/organization/uvmenactus

Society of American Foresters – This group aims to further their members’ development into capable and qualified Forestry Professionals while serving and educating the public with and on sustainable forestry practices. The UVM Forestry Program, under the Rubenstein School of Environment and Natural Resources, earned the Society of American Foresters National Accreditation in 2018. https://thelynx.campuslabs.com/engage/organization/society-of-american-foresters

UVM Bikes! Is a student run co-op that strives to increase bike accessibility, knowledge, and infrastructure for the shared benefit of our physical and environmental health. They run a free bikeshare program + bicycle education center as well as providing bikes available for rent and replacement parts for purchasing. https://thelynx.collegiatelink.net/organization/bug

Vermont Student Environmental Program (VSTEP) is a club of concerned individuals dedicated to coordinating environmental activities on the UVM campus. VSTEP's goals are to increase student awareness of prevalent environmental issues, and to promote and help institute sustainable university policies in order to maintain a socially- and environmentally-responsible institution. https://www.uvm.edu/~vstep/

Food Recovery Network is a UVM student club that works with the Intervale (local farm co-op) and local farms to salvage unused food, turn it into nutritious meals, and serve those meals to members of the Burlington community. Meals are cooked and served every Sunday morning at the Chittenden Emergency Food Shelf. https://thelynx.campuslabs.com/engage/organization/campus-kitchens

Slow Food UVM is a local chapter of an international organization emphasizing the importance of Good, Clean, and Fair food. Slow Food stands against the modern industrialized food system and works to educate people about alternative food systems. https://thelynx.collegiatelink.net/organization/slow-food-uvm

Horticulture Club - This organization was founded in 1997 to bring together students interested in horticulture so that they may increase knowledge for themselves and others in the community. Activities include trips to local gardens, numerous hands-on workshops, etc. http://www.uvm.edu/~hortclub/

Feel Good is the country's first ever, student-run, non-profit deli and the UVM chapter of FeelGood offers gourmet grilled cheese sandwiches made with local Vermont products. Proceeds go to help end world hunger. FeelGood's ingredients are donated by local businesses such as Klinger's Bread Company, Shelburne Farms, and Red Hen Bakery. Because of these sponsors, all of the money that is collected goes directly to The Hunger Project. THP is an international organization that is passionate about finding a sustainable end to world hunger. They follow a grassroots, bottom-up empowerment model and are currently operational in 23 countries worldwide. https://thelynx.campuslabs.com/engage/organization/uvm-feelgood

Sustainable Campus Fund (SCF)
Sustained by a self-imposed student fee of $10 per student per semester, UVM’s Sustainable Campus Fund (formerly the Clean Energy Fund) is designed to advance renewable energy research, education, and infrastructure on campus.
https://www.uvm.edu/cleanenergyfund

Socially Responsible Investing Advisory Committee (SRIAC)
There are 6 student seats on this committee, which is responsible for recommending which SCF proposals to fund.
https://www.uvm.edu/sriac

UVM's week long Inclusive Excellence Symposium welcomed student attendees for the first time in 2022 with specific speakers, locations and times chosen to attract a student audience. The theme was the intersection of sustainability and DEI. https://www.uvm.edu/diversity/2022-sessions

UVM celebrates Earth Week each April with a variety of events geared towards students. The following link is to the university event web page where active Earth Week events are hosted yearly. Highlights that best suit this credit are crafting times to do block printing on recycled fabric and ARTIVISM, a combination activity of art and activism. In previous years there have also been art exhibits displaying pieces made from trash or recycled materials. This is the link https://uvmbored.com/earthweek/

Wilderness TREK is a program taking first year students on outing trips (multi-day backpacking, kayaking, mountain biking, or river rafting) to build lasting friendships, initiate self-discovery, and explore the people and landscapes that are Vermont. For more than 30 years Wilderness TREK has been creating adventurous beginnings for student development at UVM. https://www.uvm.edu/studentlife/trek

Service TREK - Working in small groups of 8 TREKKIES and 2 TREK Interns (experienced students), Service TREK participants engage in direct service while learning about the value of community involvement, leadership skills, developing great friendships, and living and working as a team. https://www.uvm.edu/orientation/service_trek

The UVM Outing Club provides affordable wilderness trips, instruction, leadership training and certification opportunities for students. They also provide a comprehensive array of affordable rental equipment to the UVM community. It is our further goal to promote enjoyment, safe use and responsible stewardship of the environments we travel in through practice of Leave No Trace principles. http://www.uvm.edu/~outside/

People of Colors Outdoors (POCO) is a group that seeks to provide POCO students and those with little to no experience or accessibility to outdoor activities with the skills they need to get involved in the outdoors. http://www.uvm.edu/~alanager/

Summit Sisters is a student club organized to provide a place for female-identifying students at the University of Vermont to come together around their interest in hiking and backpacking, and provide a safe space for female-identifying students to discuss issues relating to the struggles of being a woman in the backcountry. They have included Leave-no-trace principles in their trainings and educational opportunities and employ them on trips.

All first year students take a course associated with their chosen residential learning community, one of which options is the Sustainability Learning Community. https://www.uvm.edu/reslife/sustainability

Sustainability Learning Community provides opportunities to explore and build the skills and qualities needed to create a regenerative present and future for life at all scales: personal, social, and ecological. It's a place where residents explore self, communities, and larger human and natural systems. SLC honors relationships with our local communities and natural environment by getting out and exploring the woods, Lake Champlain, local food systems, campus organizations, fall foliage, and discovering peaceful places to slow down. SLC seeks to deepen and celebrate the sense of place, fostering an atmosphere where everyone find points of connection to their community—the built environments that we inhabit, and the natural landscape that frames our lives.
Through explorations of and focus on community-building, SLC seeks to challenge and expand commonly held understandings of sustainability while embracing both the complexity of the concept as well as its inherent simplicity. In our classes and activities, SLC provides space where students can grow their understanding of sustainability while intentionally deciding how they want to live, learn, and work in the world.
https://www.uvm.edu/reslife/sustainability

Eco-Reps are employees of the Office of Sustainability trained to conduct peer outreach about sustainability programming across campus, specifically within the residential communities. https://www.uvm.edu/sustainabilityoffice/eco-reps-program
The Office of Sustainability offers paid and work study internships during the academic year and summer. Interns get involved in projects that relate to programs the Office of Sustainability coordinates both on and off campus. Our interns get to work in a professional environment and gain experience through projects generated by our Office and by the interns themselves.
The goal of our internship program is to provide real world experiences and professional development opportunities while meeting our Office’s mission: to foster sustainable development and promote environmental responsibility at the University of Vermont by strategically bridging the academic activities of teaching, research, and outreach with the operations of the University.