The Sustainability Office is excited to share something near and dear to our hearts - Measure 74 (also known as the Sustainability Office Fee)!
Measure 74 is a small undergraduate student fee measure that allows the Sustainability Office to fund paid undergraduate student positions in the office and across campus in sustainability, to host the Annual Sustainability & Social Justice Inter-Organizational Retreat, and to support student professional development and travel to sustainability conferences.
For the last decade, the Sustainability Office Fee has allowed the Sustainability Office to offer 268 paid undergraduate student jobs to make progress towards UC Santa Cruz’s sustainability goals, has funded 982 students attendance to the Annual Sustainability & Social Justice Inter-Organizational Retreat, and has paid for travel, registration, and lodging for 25 students to attend sustainability conferences.
However, the current 10-year fee period is ending - we are seeking to renew the Sustainability Office Fee to be able to continue funding these opportunities for the next decade! The renewed fee starts at $3.00 per quarter in 2020 and maxes out at $4.26 per quarter by 2030.
The benefit of the fee is so much greater than the numbers — the real impact has been in the diversity of student learning and professional development opportunities, in the connections, lifelong friendships and memories made in the Sustainability Office and at Inter-Org, and the immense progress on campus sustainability goals that students have driven through experiential projects and initiatives.
In addition, many students find their passion and a career in sustainabilily, like Elly Martinez, Class of 2015: "My time at the Sustainability Office was the most valuable experience hands down. I was able to take what I was learning in classes and apply them to real world situations that were impacting my local community. I was able to join the workforce immediately after college in my chosen field, which is sustainability; I've made my passion a career!"
This small quarterly undergraduate fee has helped sustain the vibrant student staff in the Sustainability Office for the last decade - we want to renew it for another decade to come!
Between 2020 - 2030, Measure 74 will fund up to 290 paid undergraduate student positions and up to 1,000 attendees to the Annual Sustainability and Social Justice Inter-Organizational Retreat, as well as provide other student sustainability opportunities across campus.
VOTE YES
For Measure 74 to pass, we need your help! The Sustainability Office student and professional staff would love your support in advocating for undergraduate students to VOTE on Measure 74 during this year’s UC Santa Cruz Student Elections held May 11 - 20, 2020. Below are a few quick actions you can take to support Measure 74 and the Sustainability Office!
Undergraduate students:
- Email your professors and request that they allocate the first 5 minutes of class between May 11 - 20 to allow students to vote in the elections!
- Take the online pledge to Vote YES on Measure 74 at bit.ly/YESonM74 and VOTE YES at elections.ucsc.edu
- Remind your friends to vote in the elections
- Follow, like, and share our posts on social media!
Staff:
- Encourage your student staff to follow, like, and share our posts on social media!
Faculty:
- Allocate the first 5 minutes of your sections between May 11 - 20 to allow students to vote in the elections!
- Allow students enrolled in your sections to make class raps about the elections.
- Make an announcement about the Student Elections dates in your sections and/or Canvas - encourage your students to be civically engaged!
