Dear Colleagues,
The UC Carbon Neutrality Initiative has announced a Request for Information (RFI) to solicit ideas from members of the UC community for off-campus projects that reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions or sequester carbon.
The goal of this RFI is to build a portfolio of potential offset projects that are initiated by UC faculty, students, and staff, and explore the viability of supporting those projects with payments from UC for GHG emission reductions or sequestration achieved. As an initial step, UC is offering awards of up to $70,000, depending on project size and co-benefits, to bring selected projects closer to implementation. Ultimately, UC hopes to support a portfolio of UC-initiated projects that result in GHG reductions that meaningfully contributes to UC's expected carbon offset needs of 250,000 to 500,000 tons of carbon dioxide-equivalent in 2025 and declining from that year onward.
The program welcomes submissions for projects that measurably reduce GHG emissions or sequester carbon, and would be initiated by UC. UC CNI hopes to receive a wide range of submissions that vary in size, location, type, co-benefits, submitter (faculty, students, staff, researchers), and readiness (from early testing of moonshot ideas to implementing well-established technologies).
The program is seeking two types of projects:
1) UC-initiated offset projects: UC seeks to build a portfolio of potential offset projects originating from UC research and educational programs, and is exploring the viability of supporting those projects with payments based on GHG emissions reductions achieved. UC is currently offering awards of up to $70,000 to help bring selected projects closer to implementation.
2) Projects already on the carbon offset market: UC is looking for recommendations from faculty, staff, and students for projects currently available on the voluntary offset market that meaningfully reduce emissions and are otherwise sustainable. Recommendations will be reviewed as they are submitted.
Projects can be located anywhere and must meet UC values by resulting in emissions reductions or sequestration that are high quality, reasonable-cost, and fulfill our mission of research, education, and public service. The program is seeking projects that expand or apply UC research, offer educational opportunities to students, advance understanding of scalable climate solutions, provide health and social justice benefits, and directly benefit or have resonance with the UC community and communities surrounding the UC campuses.
Additionally, the program is hosting an upcoming workshop on Friday, April 26, 10am-12pm at UC Davis, Putah Creek Lodge. The workshop will serve to provide an overview of campus climate action to-date and discuss the RFI. Project PI Barbara Haya (bhaya@uc-ciee.org) will attend this workshop to answer questions. UC ANR affiliates are welcome to attend this workshop, or to meet with Barbara during the afternoon of Friday, April 26 on the Davis campus or at the UC ANR building in Davis.
For additional information and to submit your ideas, please visit the Request for Ideas website (https://offsets.uc-ciee.org/home)
RFI concept submissions are due by May 31, 2019. Please contact Vanity Campbell at vcampbell@ucanr.edu if you are interested in responding to this request for information, or would like to schedule a meeting at UC ANR Davis with PI Barbara Haya.
Thank you.
Kathleen Nolan, Director, ANR Office of Contracts & Grants (OCG)