Virginia Tech funds five sustainability projects through Green RFP Program
Five campus sustainability proposals from student organizations will receive more than $55,000 from Virginia Tech to improve energy efficiency, conservation, and alternative transportation.
The projects include
- A bike parking hub near Pamplin Hall
- A covered bike rack for the Graduate Life Center
- An additional 17 water bottle refill stations in seven buildings
- Funding for the Ytoss program
- Electric hand dryers for the bathrooms in the Surge Building
The projects were selected as part of the Green RFP Program run through the Virginia Tech Office of Energy and Sustainability. Every year, the office seeks proposals from students and student groups for sustainability projects that support Virginia Tech’s Climate Action Commitment, especially projects focused on energy efficiency and energy conservation.
The five approved projects were among 12 proposals from seven different student organizations that were reviewed by the Office of Energy and Sustainability, the campus Energy and Sustainability Committee, and the Office of Budget and Financial Planning.
“The Green RFP Program was developed to give students a way to turn their sustainability ideas into action,” said Denny Cochrane, Virginia Tech sustainability program manager. “The intent is to have proposals submitted and funded in the same academic year. To date, the results have been awesome.”
Since 2010, the program has provided more than $200,000 to 27 sustainability projects. Past projects include bike racks, new low-flow shower heads, an irrigation system for the Smithfield Garden, additions to the Sustainable Garden at Kentland Farms, and new recycling containers.
This year, Coca-Cola provided $21,500 to help fund the Green RFP Program.
For more information about the program, and to read previous proposals, visit the Office of Energy and Sustainability website or contact Denny Cochrane at 540-231-5184.
Dedicated to its motto, Ut Prosim (That I May Serve), Virginia Tech takes a hands-on, engaging approach to education, preparing scholars to be leaders in their fields and communities. As the commonwealth’s most comprehensive university and its leading research institution, Virginia Tech offers 240 undergraduate and graduate degree programs to more than 31,000 students and manages a research portfolio of $513 million. The university fulfills its land-grant mission of transforming knowledge to practice through technological leadership and by fueling economic growth and job creation locally, regionally, and across Virginia.
