The University of St. Thomas Campus Sustainability Fund Committee is inviting members of the university community to submit proposals to help the school reach its goal of becoming climate neutral by the year 2035.

Since 2008, when former St. Thomas President the Rev. Dennis Dease pledged to achieve carbon neutrality at St. Thomas, the goal has been a 4 percent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions every year. Director of Resident Life and member of the Campus Sustainability Fund Committee Aaron Macke said CSF proposals and projects are about more than just reducing carbon emissions.

“Obviously we want to reduce our carbon footprint, so any project that helps in reducing the carbon footprint is something that we want to see,” Macke said. “But the education piece is really big and has a great impact on our students’ research opportunities, involvement and educational opportunities. That can receive a lot of weight too.”

Any member of the St. Thomas community can submit a proposal, but Macke said student involvement is especially important to the committee and that the university wants to see grassroots change.

“We want to see projects that are going to improve our carbon footprint, but we also want to get people involved, and we want to especially get students involved,” he said. “Any project that involves staff or faculty and students together to either help educate students or help educate the university community is good.”

For the past four years, St. Thomas has achieved its goal of reducing annual pollution by 4 percent. As long as the goal is met, St. Thomas Facilities Management will donate $50,000 annually to the CSF.

Proposals that are approved by the Sustainability Committee – the overseeing branch of the CSF – are then allocated money from the fund. Previously funded CSF proposals include the solar panels on the roof of the Anderson Student Center and the hydration stations in residence halls and other campus buildings. Macke believes no proposal is a bad one.

“What’s nice about this fund is that it is really wide open and so depending on what someone sees as a project, we get to read new things every year and get to evaluate them and make some decisions,” he said. “That’s exciting and I think that’s the whole point of it too, to be creative every year about what these funds could be spent on.”

Only one proposal has been submitted so far, suggesting low-flow shower heads. Sophomore Cari Monroe, a student member of the CSF Committee, was involved in writing the proposal to get the solar panels on the roof of ASC. Monroe said students could benefit from submitting a proposal.

“It’s really good on a resume, and getting a grant is a huge thing that employers look at,” Monroe said. “It’s also something to be very proud of.”

Junior Kennedy Kruchoski, a student member of the Sustainability Committee, said personal connection to campus is a major reason student involvement is encouraged.

“Faculty only have so much experience with being on campus and having this as a home and community,” Kruchoski said. “There’s a responsibility that we feel as students towards our community, towards resident life and just campus life in general, that faculty kind of lacks in some ways. There’s something a bit more personal coming from a student’s perspective.”

With the university’s climate neutrality goal still 20 years away, sustainability initiatives at St. Thomas are still in their early stages. Still, Macke believes the school has already seen benefits, including an increase in sustainability awareness around campus.

“The energy and the education around sustainability has grown immensely,’’ he said. “That is probably in and of itself the biggest thing that this initiative does.”

CSF proposals can be submitted online.

William Faust can be reached at faus5612@stthomas.edu.