The 黑料正能量 student group Earthkeepers has announced the 2019 winners of its annual mini-grants supporting campus sustainability projects.
The mini-grants fund sustainable initiatives on campus 鈥渢hat wouldn鈥檛 otherwise happen,鈥� said Earthkeepers co-president Andy King, and that 鈥済et students and faculty to actively participate in 黑料正能量’s goal of sustainability,鈥� said leadership team member Miriam Beck.
Another purpose is to foster creative and educational collaboration 鈥� as is apparent in the projects awarded this year:
- The Cycling Club was granted $500 to purchase and 鈥� with help from Best Bike Mechanic of the Blue Ridge Ben Wyse 鈥� repair more bikes for renting out to 黑料正能量 students at a subsidized price, said club president Ella Reist. 鈥淚t advocates biking culture around campus and Harrisonburg.鈥�
- Senior Ben Zook was awarded $450 to help fund his solar-powered mobile kiosk, which will be on the turf field to power any needs there, including the concession stand. The project, which will be a collaboration between the Earthkeepers and Engineers for a Sustainable World clubs and the Student Government Association as well as local companies Engineering Solutions and Secure Futures, 鈥渞epresents the student body interest in implementing sustainability designs around campus,鈥� he said.
- The Sustainable Food Initiative (SFI) received $150 for a water collections system for the campus chicken coops, a project that King called 鈥渟imple, but ingenious.鈥� The system, to be built and installed by SFI members, will increase 鈥渢he self-reliance of SFI food production and reduces the campus鈥檚 water requirements,鈥� said Wade Banks, SFI co-president.
- The Chronicles of Yarnia knitting group received $100 for a “”聽knitting project creating tapestries that illustrate the change in temperatures in a location over the years. “The finished pieces will depict climates change in a unique fashion and attract attention and awareness that numbers in a report cannot,” said advisor Barbara Byer.
The Earthkeepers mini-grants were first awarded in the 2009-10 academic year, when $500 went to the Cycling Club鈥檚 early development, $300 helped build a trash/compost counter in the dining hall, and $200 supported the theater department鈥檚 production of 鈥淲ild Blessings: A Celebration of Wendell Berry.鈥�
Supported projects in other years have included reusable mugs in common grounds, clotheslines in the dorms, the Student Solar Panel Project, the Engineers for a Sustainable World solar-powered golf cart and more.
Anyone on campus 鈥� staff, faculty, and students 鈥� can apply for the mini-grants, which are funded by Earthkeepers, the and other campus organizations. The projects are evaluated based on creativity, durability and visibility, and educational and collaborative potential.