Grants ranging from $800 to $45,000 have been approved for 12 projects in the 2008-09 funding cycle of The Green Initiative Fund (TGIF).

According to Jill Richardson, campus sustainability coordinator, TGIF received a record 34 applications from faculty, staff, and students seeking almost $1 million for various sustainability projects. TGIF wound up distributing $140,446 to the 12 projects. Among those receiving funds were Save a Tree: Stop Junk Mail, $5,000; Increase Energy Efficiency in the ESB Cleanroom, $30,004; and Getting Organic Solvents out of Chemistry Experiments, $45,000.

The TGIF Grant Making Committee is a student-majority governing body selected to oversee the annual TGIF fund of approximately $150,000. The fund was created in 2006 when the student body voted for a $2.60 per quarter lock-in fee. The money is used to finance sustainability projects that help reduce the university’s impact on the environment.

For more information on TGIF, go to <http://sustainability.ucsb.edu/tgif>.