The Greening of UW–Madison

The Green Fund supported installing bird-safe windows around campus. Lauren Graves

Students at UW–Madison are often quick to notice opportunities to improve the sustainability of campus facilities. However, many don’t have the resources to solve the problem on their own. That’s why the UW Office of Sustainability created the Green Fund program, which supports student-initiated environmental projects.

Students bring their proposals to the Green Fund staff, who help them collect data, write funding proposals, implement a project, and report on the outcomes. Since launching in 2017, it has supported such initiatives as installing bird-safe windows around campus, reducing waste in dining halls, and installing a BCycle station at the Arboretum Visitor Center.

In the last academic year, the Green Fund received 15 applications, the highest number ever.

“We approve most applications we receive,” says program manager Ian Aley MS’17. “If an idea isn’t ready right away, we offer feedback and continue to support the student team until it’s ready for approval.”

In 2022, the UW grounds crew approached Office of Sustainability staff about replacing seven of their fossil-fuel-powered riding lawn mowers with electric ones. The Green Fund staff invited the student group Campus Leaders for Energy Action Now (CLEAN) to collaborate on the project.

Aley helped the CLEAN students calculate the cost savings and carbon impact of the conversion to electric. They also conducted interviews with the mower operators to learn about their process. The result: swapping out the diesel and gas mowers for electric models.

The data collected by the students will inform future electrification efforts on campus.

Published in the Fall 2025 issue