UIC awarded continuation funding from Second Nature’s Acceleration Fund

The University of Illinois Chicago has been named one of nine colleges and universities awarded funding in Second Nature’s Third Round of the Acceleration Fund. Second Nature’s mission is to accelerate climate action in and through higher education.

Third Round grants were announced during the 2022 Higher Education Climate Leadership Summit. UIC’s $10,000 Acceleration Fund grant will support graduate student staffing to strengthen the partnership between Urban Growers Collective and the university. Through resource procurement, technical negotiations and continued establishment of the relationship, UIC seeks best practices for identifying community partner needs, supplementing their existing work with university resources, and working collectively to advance university-community relationships to mitigate climate injustices.

UGC is a strategic partner in the Green Era Renewable Energy and Urban Farm Campus, and the Healthy Lifestyle Hub in Auburn Gresham, a primarily Black neighborhood that has low socio-economic and community wellness indicators due to historic disinvestment. The goal of this nascent work is to develop a climate justice framework to provide the foundation for resilient and lasting models for university-community collaborations seeking to advance climate justice.

“We are excited to work with Second Nature in building and strengthening university-community partnerships for climate justice that break down barriers while supporting UIC’s climate commitments,” UIC Chancellor Michael Amiridis said.

The Acceleration Fund is dedicated to supporting climate action activities driven by colleges and universities. The Fund supports projects that advance decarbonization and/or campus-community partnerships and resilience goals. Second Nature also supports proposals that clearly articulate how the work relates to advancing principles of climate justice/equity.

Learn more about UIC’s sustainability initiatives.