2008 Woodie Awards
Group asks for higher tuition, greener campus
Tara Young
Issue date: 10/26/07 Section: News
- Page 1 of 4 next >
Eco-Advocates, a campus environmental group, in partnership with the UCF Arboretum and the Sustainability Alliance, is taking the battle for environmentally sustainable practices at UCF to the next level.
Joining the ranks of other colleges in the state, the group is moving forward with their initiative to pass the Green Fee.
The Green Fee is a student fee intended to generate money for sustainable efforts, such as the use of solar energy, to reduce energy consumption.
Eco-Advocates is proposing a fee of 75 cents per credit hour per student, amounting to about half a million dollars each semester for the Green fund.
"It's less important as a fee and more important in that students are so engaged in the debate over global warming and energy independence that they're willing to invest in their future by investing in their campus," said Jason Misner, the Florida organizer for the Southern Energy Network.
The money would go directly into a fund that would be overseen by a Green Fee subcommittee under the sustainability alliance. The committee would be mostly made up of students.
The Green Fee would support an array of environmentally beneficial projects, including solar panels, composting, student gardens and local, organic food purchasing plans.
"The Green Fee can be used for increasing bike trails, land management, clean energy and social justice programs, as long as it's within the realm of sustainability," said Alaina Bernard, assistant director and environmental steward for the UCF Arboretum. "However, it's not just focused on energy. The Green Fee is going to go toward alternative programs to reduce our campus footprint."
The first step in implementing the Green Fee at UCF is gathering enough student signatures. UCF needs about 5,000 signatures to open up a student referendum vote, which is the second step in the process.
"The truth is, it's so far out of Student Government hands to just wage fees against students, so students have to petition for that themselves," said Alex Berkun, environmental sustainability coordinator for SGA and an Eco-Advocates member. "So we have to take steps, starting with getting a referendum vote, which is the most democratic way to pass something, and it also reflects student opinion better than any other resolution or vote we could get on campus from Student Government. The referendum is pretty much the ultimate student voice in influencing Florida legislators."
Joining the ranks of other colleges in the state, the group is moving forward with their initiative to pass the Green Fee.
The Green Fee is a student fee intended to generate money for sustainable efforts, such as the use of solar energy, to reduce energy consumption.
Eco-Advocates is proposing a fee of 75 cents per credit hour per student, amounting to about half a million dollars each semester for the Green fund.
"It's less important as a fee and more important in that students are so engaged in the debate over global warming and energy independence that they're willing to invest in their future by investing in their campus," said Jason Misner, the Florida organizer for the Southern Energy Network.
The money would go directly into a fund that would be overseen by a Green Fee subcommittee under the sustainability alliance. The committee would be mostly made up of students.
The Green Fee would support an array of environmentally beneficial projects, including solar panels, composting, student gardens and local, organic food purchasing plans.
"The Green Fee can be used for increasing bike trails, land management, clean energy and social justice programs, as long as it's within the realm of sustainability," said Alaina Bernard, assistant director and environmental steward for the UCF Arboretum. "However, it's not just focused on energy. The Green Fee is going to go toward alternative programs to reduce our campus footprint."
The first step in implementing the Green Fee at UCF is gathering enough student signatures. UCF needs about 5,000 signatures to open up a student referendum vote, which is the second step in the process.
"The truth is, it's so far out of Student Government hands to just wage fees against students, so students have to petition for that themselves," said Alex Berkun, environmental sustainability coordinator for SGA and an Eco-Advocates member. "So we have to take steps, starting with getting a referendum vote, which is the most democratic way to pass something, and it also reflects student opinion better than any other resolution or vote we could get on campus from Student Government. The referendum is pretty much the ultimate student voice in influencing Florida legislators."