¹û½´ÊÓƵ

Overview: 

¹û½´ÊÓƵ offers a Sustainability Fund to support ¹û½´ÊÓƵ students, faculty and staff to engage in educational activities and projects to advance the actions and strategies of its Sustainability & Climate Action (S&CA) Plan. This funding aims to support projects led by individual members of the ¹û½´ÊÓƵ community (up to $500) or by groups (up to $2,500). Collaborations between students and faculty/staff are encouraged in creating and implementing S&CA projects.

Eligibility of Applicants: 

Current members of the ¹û½´ÊÓƵ community are eligible to apply to this Fund, including ¹û½´ÊÓƵ graduate students (currently registered in an ¹û½´ÊÓƵ program), ¹û½´ÊÓƵ faculty, ¹û½´ÊÓƵ staff (with manager's approval), and ¹û½´ÊÓƵ sessional lecturers (currently teaching at least 1 course at ¹û½´ÊÓƵ). Group applications are encouraged (the Lead applicant must be a current member of the ¹û½´ÊÓƵ community.) Graduate students applying for individual projects will be asked to provide an academic reference of an ¹û½´ÊÓƵ professor.

Project Eligibility:

Funded projects must:

• be initiated and led by current members of the ¹û½´ÊÓƵ community
• be awarded funding through an application and adjudication process
• support and enact at least one of the actions and strategies of ¹û½´ÊÓƵ’s Sustainability & Climate Action (S&CA) Plan Strands
• involve and positively impact the ¹û½´ÊÓƵ community
• adhere to the Sustainability Fund guidelines, as well as to existing OISE and University of Toronto policies, principles and practices

Funding can be used for the following:

• Projects that plan & implement ¹û½´ÊÓƵ educational campaigns, programs and/or events for the ¹û½´ÊÓƵ community related to S&CA  (i.e. speakers’ fees for public events, promotional costs, catering costs, materials, resources, etc.)
• Projects that deepen awareness of S&CA at ¹û½´ÊÓƵ (e.g., developing educational resources related to S&CA)
• Projects that encourage/enable community behaviours that reduce ¹û½´ÊÓƵ’s carbon/ecological footprint (e.g., water, waste & energy reductions or conservation)
• Projects that bring S&CA to ¹û½´ÊÓƵ’s practices and spaces through individual and community behaviours and choices
• Projects that mobilize/share knowledge & research around S&CA (e.g., events, lectures, resource development)
• Conference registration fees for ¹û½´ÊÓƵ graduate students to present on S&CA research (up to a maximum of $200)
• ¹û½´ÊÓƵ students’ work on S&CA events, programs or projects (hourly rate for ¹û½´ÊÓƵ students’ time on a funded S&CA project up to a maximum of $500)

Funding cannot be used for the following types of projects:

• Projects that duplicate another project, program or service currently being offered
• Retroactive funding for costs incurred before the application submission
• Course development
• Students’ work for which they receive course credit (e.g., coursework or course assignments)
• Cost of alcohol or cannabis served at any event
• Fundraising events for individuals, groups or donations to charities
• Administrative or operating costs of an organization or company
• Travel expenses associated with projects, events or conferences
• Conducting research for faculty, staff, sessional lecturers or graduate students (e.g., literature reviews, data collection or analysis)
• Compensation for staff or faculty

Conditions:

• Projects will be considered only if a full Sustainability Fund Application Form is submitted by the deadline (applications will be reviewed by the Sustainability Fund Adjudication Committee as soon as possible)
• Funded projects must be completed within one year of receiving the funding.
• The Project Lead must submit a one page final report within 30 days of the project end-date, outlining the project’s outcomes, impacts, and future potential of the project
• A Sustainability Fund Reimbursement Form must be completed within 30 days of the project end-date to access funding.

How to Apply:

The fund application period (March 15 - May 15, 2025) has opened.  Consider downloading the  for reviewing & preparing the info required in advance of completing the official application. The online official Application Form is .

Questions?  Reach out to the SCAN Team at oise.scan@utoronto.ca