Sustainability at Virginia Tech
Green RFP Program
This ongoing funding opportunity for students has provided over $1.5 million dollars since its inception for student-led projects to improve the built environment of campus. It has been essential in building out core sustainability infrastructure like water bottle refill stations and lighting improvements that reduce waste and improve energy efficiency. This program lets students make a tangible impact to campus by influencing its infrastructure and getting cutting-edge project ideas funded by the university. This is a keystone program for supporting student-led initiatives in climate action across Virginia Tech and is unique in its scope of support and funding for students.
"The Green RFP program is such a good example of how seriously the university takes student input. It provides funding for student projects around climate action and we've seen some of the most creative and effective examples of sustainability come from eager students. We highly encourage any classes that deal with sustainability to spotlight our Green RFP program for students as it really does make a difference on campus"
Jack Leff, 2023
Climate Action Living Laboratory
The CALL is an aspirational goal of Virginia Tech's Climate Action Commitment that seeks to bridge the gap between academic, research, and infrastructural elements of campus. The CALL is a hub that exists between faculty, students, and staff to help promote innovative research opportunities for faculty, experiential learning opportunities for students, and Climate Action initiatives for Staff. As an R1 institution, Virginia Tech has a wealth of resources to offer for building the most climate conscious campus in the country and the CALL is one mechanism to take advantage of that internal expertise by offering the campus itself as an experimental site for faculty to both work with staff to implement the Climate Action Commitment and develop local experiential learning programs for students.
"As a lifelong educator, the CALL is a unique opportunity to engage students and faculty in climate action work. I'm excited about the local and community impact the CALL will have as it connects students to their campus and to the larger NRV community in ways we haven't seen before."
Jack Leff, 2023
The Virginia Tech Office of Sustainability
The Office of Sustainability at Virginia Tech works to educate the VT community about how to live a more sustainable and low-impact lifestyle through behavior change and an understanding of the impacts one’s personal actions can have on a global scale. The office works with the understanding that even the smallest behavior changes can create a more sustainable world.