This section provides access to financial resources for colleges and universities interested in green building, including links to green building financial analysis studies as well as strategies for energy cost savings. Grant and other funding-related information is grouped into the following categories:
The following links provide power management and energy savings strategies, resources and case studies specific to higher education institutions from ENERGY STAR and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
This case study exemplifies how power management practices can save energy waste and dramatically reduce institutional operating costs. Colleges and universities can work with Energy Star to induce low-power sleep mode of computer monitors during periods of inactivity.
A list of ENERGY STAR resources and tools available to colleges and universities that can assist schools in considering the appropriate energy projects and overall energy management strategies on campus.
The following section provides links to studies outlining cost benefit analyses of green building. Case studies specific to higher education institutions illustrate financial and other benefits of building sustainably.
This 2003 study by Greg Kats is a definitive cost benefit analysis of green building, illustrating that a minimal 2% increase in construction costs for green building yields a life cycle savings of over ten times the initial investment.
This 2006 publication by Greg Kats explores the costs of green building and then demonstrates the financial, environmental, and other benefits of using green design & technologies in schools.
This 2007 study by David Langdon examined 221 LEED-seeking and non-LEED seeking buildings, including 60 academic classroom buildings on college and university campuses. Langdon concludes that there is no significant difference in the average cost for green buildings as compared to non-green buildings.
This 2009 CBRE report indicates that marginal investment in green certification may raise development costs by only 2-3% above those for a standard building while making the case that sustainable buildings enjoy significant energy usage savings, attract higher rents, and enjoy higher rates of rental growth.
This guide from AASHE highlights the essential benefits of a revolving loan fund and outlines steps for setting up a student-led revolving loan fund for funding campus sustainability projects. The guide also provides examples of campus sustainability funds and sample project ideas.
This EPA document outlines steps taken to set up Harvard University's revolving loan fund, and provides details, examples and lessons learned from the project.
Hidden Costs of Energy defines and evaluates key external costs and benefits that are associated with the production, distribution, and use of energy, but not reflected in market prices. It is a vital informational tool for government policy makers, scientists, and economists in even the earliest stages of research and development on energy technologies.
This article on Higher Education and building LEED®-certified buildings explains that it does not cost any more now to build a LEED®-certified building than it does to build a non LEED®-certified building.
Ben Barlow, with guidance from Andrea Putman, provides higher education leaders with a comprehensive handbook to financing sustainability with real world examples, creative strategies, and clear explanations of a wide variety of financial tools and programs.
Written for school administrators and board members, this new guide by the U.S. Department of Energy provides information on the process of financing energy-efficient school renovations, retrofits or new construction and outlines the advantages and disadvantages of a variety of financing mechanisms.
This section contains links to financial resources on the federal level grouped into the following categories: Energy; Tax Credits and Deductions; EPA Grants; Green Building Grants; and Environmental Education and Training Grants.
The EPA is providing support for source reduction/pollution prevention projects that will provide an overall benefit to the environment by preventing pollutants at the source (Arizona, California, Hawaii, Nevada, the Pacific Islands, and Tribal Nations)
Numerous sources of funding for green building are available at the national, state and local levels for homeowners, industry, government organizations and nonprofits.
This program provides specialized funding for minority-serving institutions (MSIs) to train students to help foster environmentally sustainable and economically viable local communities.
The EPA is proving grants to create increased community awareness of toxic pollutants & collaborative partnerships for a renewed environment (Arizona, California, Hawaii, Nevada, the Pacific Islands, and Tribal Nations)
This section contains links to financial resources including rebates and incentives, loans and grants, and certifications at the state and local levels. The resources are grouped according to the states in which they apply. Please scroll further down to look at some of the regional maps and information. Be sure to check within your state for local financial resources and share them with other users of this website.
Earn incentives up to $100,000 per site, per year for qualifying energy-saving improvements to commercial or industrial buildings. Eligible projects include lighting, air conditioning systems, plug loads and more.
Program to help qualified small-to-midsize and not-for-profit organizations implement a variety of energy efficiency measures with financial incentives to offset initial investment.
The following links provide access to private financial resources that will be useful to colleges and universities interested in green building and other sustainable practices. Be sure to check these organizations' websites for new funding information.
Grants up to $75,000 cover planning and construction costs of residential green building projects, and are intended to improve the feasibility of integrating green building items throughout affordable housing developments. 501(c)(3) nonprofits, tribally designated housing entities eligible.
Assistance to $5,000 for housing developers to integrate green building systems in their developments and engage in a serious discussion of green design possibilities. 501(c)(3) nonprofits, tribally designated housing entities eligible.
This program provides grants of upto $5000 to facilitate the transfer design knowledge of Enterprise Green Communities planning and construction grant projects to residents, as well as operations and management staff. 501(c)(3) nonprofits, tribally designated housing entities eligible.
The John Merck Foundation provides environment related grants that are not specifically green building grants, but opportunities may come up in the future.
The Kresge Foundation is a $2.8 billion private, national foundation that seeks to influence the quality of life for future generations through its support of nonprofit organizations in six fields of interest: health, the environment, community development, arts and culture, education and human services.
Challenge grants are awarded to organizations that cater specifically to the needs of poor, disadvantaged and disenfranchised in six fields of interest: health, the environment, arts and culture, education, human services, and community development. Effective June 2010, Kresge will only award capital challenge grants to colleges and universities building environmentally sustainable facilities.
The following links provide access to international financial resources that will be useful to colleges and universities interested in green building and other sustainable practices. Be sure to suggest additional resources that can be used in this section.
Second Nature - Green Building 101 for Building Contractors
Second Nature, with funding from The Kresge Foundation, offered colleges and universities in states with relatively low numbers of green building projects, to apply for technical assistance grants of up to $2000 each. These grants funded green building training opportunities for the external building professionals (i.e., construction contractors, architects, designers, engineers) that work with their schools. Minority-serving institutions, community and technical colleges, smaller inner city, rural religiously-affiliated institutions, and public universities in under-resourced states were eligible and encouraged to apply.
Rural Development Electric Programs
The US Department of Agriculture provided High Energy Cost Assistance to Rural (including tribal) communities.
Resource Conservation Challenge Program
This program was designed to increase recycling of municipal solid waste, construction, demolition debris and industrial materials in Region 5 [Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio and Wisconsin].
Solid Waste Reduction & Community Redevelopment
This program was designed to reduce solid waste and redevelop communities (including sustainable building), EPA Region 9 (Arizona, California, Hawaii, Nevada, the Pacific Islands, and Tribal Nations.
Research Training Program for College and University Students
This EPA grant was designed to support the training of undergraduate and graduate students in research and support increased emphasis on the training of future environmental scientists.
Commercial Building Partnership - DOE Net-Zero Building Energy Initiative
US DOE EERE released this Call for Projects for Commercial Building Partnerships as part of the Net-Zero Energy Commercial Building Initiative with a due date of January 15, 2010. Successful candidates were recognized as Commercial Building Partners and provided with no-cost technical support from the Department’s National Laboratories to develop, incorporate, test, and share energy-efficient designs and practices.
Energy Sustainability and Efficiency Grants and Loans for Institutions (ESEGLI)
The Energy Independence and Security Act Section 471 created the Energy Sustainability and Efficiency Grants and Loans for Institutions (ESEGLI) program, which provided up to $500 million in loans and up to $250 million in grants annually for renewable energy and energy efficiency projects to higher education institutions, public schools, and local governments.
2010 School Bond Allocation Recovery Program
The U.S. Department of Treasury and the Department of Education announced $11 billion in allocation authority to issue qualified school construction bonds under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Recovery Act).
Environmental Education Grant Program, EPA Region 9
This program provided financial support for projects which design, demonstrate or disseminate environmental education practices, methods or techniques (Arizona, California, Hawaii, Nevada, the Pacific Islands, and Tribal Nations).
University Sustainability Program (USP)
The Higher Education Act created the University Sustainability Program (USP) to fund competitive grants to colleges and universities as well as higher education consortia, associations, and alliances for the purposes of establishing new or existing sustainability programs.
East Los Angeles College (ELAC) is one of nine public institutions of the Los Angeles Community College District (LACCD). The solar farm at ELAC is a major component in the sustained effort to take all nine of its colleges "off the grid."
