Spring Break
Univ. approves new avenue for green projects
Issue date: 3/27/08
Hopkins students are continuing to show their support for a "green" university, having just received approval for a new environmental sustainability initiative, tentatively called the Sustainable Hopkins Infrastructure Program (SHIP).
The program, which was approved shortly before spring break, will provide a simplified avenue for students and employees to secure funding and support for green projects on campus.
The program hopes to support projects that will improve energy efficiency and reduce operating costs across Homewood. The University will form a committee of administrators and students who will review project proposals and green-light funding based on their adherence to certain criteria, which have yet to be finalized.
"The overall goals are to get students involved in sustainability and to reduce the environmental impact and operating costs of the university," said Daniel Teran, president of the class of 2011.
What eventually became SHIP was originally pitched by Teran to the Hopkins administration with the support of the Student Council. In its initial phase, the project was billed as a "Sustainability Revolving Loan Fund," and was essentially a pool of capital which would have been loaned to departments with the intention of increasing the fund as the departments saw returns on their green investments.
The inspiration for the Fund was a program called the Harvard Green Campus Initiative, which was implemented by Harvard in 2000. The finalized program, SHIP, bears little resemblance to Harvard's Initiative.
Following the administrative meeting held before spring break, extensive changes were made to the initial proposal - most importantly, there will not be a specific fund from which SHIP projects will draw money, and money will be given to the projects, not lent.
Where the money will be drawn from is not yet clear. According to Davis Bookhart, Hopkins's environmental stewardship manager, the University's financial deans noted that a centralized fund could sit unused if too few of the allotted funds were utilized. Because the academic divisions of Hopkins pay for activities and utilities on Homewood campus, and would reap the benefits of any cost savings, Bookhart noted that they would be the ones to identify funding for approved proposals.
The program, which was approved shortly before spring break, will provide a simplified avenue for students and employees to secure funding and support for green projects on campus.
The program hopes to support projects that will improve energy efficiency and reduce operating costs across Homewood. The University will form a committee of administrators and students who will review project proposals and green-light funding based on their adherence to certain criteria, which have yet to be finalized.
"The overall goals are to get students involved in sustainability and to reduce the environmental impact and operating costs of the university," said Daniel Teran, president of the class of 2011.
What eventually became SHIP was originally pitched by Teran to the Hopkins administration with the support of the Student Council. In its initial phase, the project was billed as a "Sustainability Revolving Loan Fund," and was essentially a pool of capital which would have been loaned to departments with the intention of increasing the fund as the departments saw returns on their green investments.
The inspiration for the Fund was a program called the Harvard Green Campus Initiative, which was implemented by Harvard in 2000. The finalized program, SHIP, bears little resemblance to Harvard's Initiative.
Following the administrative meeting held before spring break, extensive changes were made to the initial proposal - most importantly, there will not be a specific fund from which SHIP projects will draw money, and money will be given to the projects, not lent.
Where the money will be drawn from is not yet clear. According to Davis Bookhart, Hopkins's environmental stewardship manager, the University's financial deans noted that a centralized fund could sit unused if too few of the allotted funds were utilized. Because the academic divisions of Hopkins pay for activities and utilities on Homewood campus, and would reap the benefits of any cost savings, Bookhart noted that they would be the ones to identify funding for approved proposals.
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