The WVU Advanced Energy Initiative
Sustainable and Renewable Energy Grants Program In Collaboration with the WVU Office of Facilities and Services
Student Request for Proposals
Energy Funding Competition
Due Date for Proposals: March 17, 2009
Funding Available: August 15, 2009
Summary of Program Requirements
- Program Title: Sustainable and Renewable EGP
- Program Officer: Professor M. Gautam, Interim Associate Vice President Research mgautam@mail.wvu.edu
- Sustainability Office: Clement Solomon
Director of Sustainability, WVU
Clement.Solomon@mail.wvu.edu
Eligibility Limits
- Undergraduate students from any discipline may apply for an award
- Cross-college teams of 3-6 participants, including a faculty advisor, are preferred
- Students interesting in finding a team in order to participate in this activity should contact Mr. C. Solomon at Clement.Solomon@mail.wvu.edu or Joseph Wiles at Joseph.Wiles@mail.wvu.edu.
Award Information
- Grants ranging from $500 to $1,000 per team will be awarded for incidental expenses related to the proposed project. It is not intended for salary support
- The funding competition will be held each semester
Program Description
The purpose of this program, which is sponsored by WVU Facilities and Services, the Research Corporation and the WVU Colleges, is to provide research opportunities for undergraduate students who are interested in improving the sustainable use of energy, environmental practices or advancing energy efficiency across the WVU campus. The proposed research should be practical, realistic and achievable. Examples of projects and/or themes that students could engage in, but not limited to, include:
- Harness the energy from all the exercise machines in the WVU Recreational Center -A feasibility study (Funded proposal, Spring 2009)
- Evaluate the carbon footprint of WVU and assess cost-effective ways to reduce it
- Interact closely with the WVU Facilities Management to enhance energy conservation, utilization, and management
- WVU’s impacts (including off-campus impacts) on the community, local traffic, etc.
- Encourage the town in becoming a leader in energy efficiency and use
- Analyze and improve energy consumption, energy conservation, and carbon footprints for the community
- Create a public Website that posts live statistics’ on energy issues that impact WVU, Morgantown, and WV
- Publish audits and seek additional opportunities for full transparency
- Alternative energy use and economic analysis
- Analysis and evaluation of current policies instruments (local, regional and state-wide)
- Innovative technology retrofits and tradeoffs in buildings (office and residential) related to conservation, recovery and reuse
- Multi-disciplinary project in converting the traditional “Environmentally Unfriendly” local resources to a renewable resource through industry partnerships
Proposal Submission Guidelines
The proposal should be no more than two pages in length, excluding the Proposal Application Approval Sheet, and include the following details:
- Objective
- Background information
- Project description including the approach to tackling the problem(s) outlined and a projected project schedule
- Expected deliverable(s)
- Proposed budget outlining funds required
A cover sheet, appended to this RFP should be attached to the proposal. The cover sheet may also be downloaded from research.wvu.edu
Project Review
A post-project report will be required upon completion of this research. This will be due at the end of the semester in which the grant was awarded. The report should conform to the following guidelines:
- It should be 3-5 pages in length
- The report should describe the problem outlined in the original proposal, and the methodology used in its study
- The results of this study, its potential cost savings (if applicable) and future opportunities for continuing and/or expanding the study should be discussed
- Itemized spending accounts should be detailed
- A presentation from each team to representatives of the sponsoring organizations will also be required.
Proposals should be submitted to Joseph Wiles (Joseph.Wiles@mail.wvu.edu) by 4:45 pm EST on March 31, 2009.
