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Climate Neutral UiB

UiB Climate Fund

Apply for the UiB climate fund and help reduce the university's climate footprint.

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About the fund

For a number of years, the University of Bergen has been working to promote sustainability in our research and education programs, and with a particular focus on the goal to become climate neutral by 2030. In the last few years UiB have also increased the awareness of the importance of sustainability within our own organization. The work to become climate neutral, managed through the project “Climate Neutral 2030”, has been a prioritized area.  Our university board has pushed the organization to set ambitious climate goals, which includes the introduction of an annual climate budget that maps the totality of the university’s emissions.

In October 2020, the University Board decided to establish a dedicated fund to finance actions that will help motivate employees and students in the work to reduce the university climate footprint. This fund will amount to 2 million NOK in 2023.

The purpose of the fund

The fund shall finance measures that support the work to ensure a more environmentally and climate friendly university. Either through direct reduction of UiB’s climate footprint, or by motivating students and employees to participate in a joint “environment and climate dugnad”.

There is one application deadline each semester.

The deadline this semester was October 15th. The next application deadline will soon be announced. 

Link to the application form.

Who can apply:

  • Funding can be given to initiatives and measures that contribute to UiB’s work for a more climate and environmentally friendly university, either by directly reducing UiB's climate footprint, or by engaging students and staff in joint environmental and climate efforts.
  • Applicants must be registered students or employees at UiB, and affiliation to the person's faculty/department must be stated in the application.
  • Applicants must send an electronic application form (see above) within the current application deadline. There is one application deadline per semester.
  • Both students and employees can apply for funding for smaller or more extensive measures limited to NOK 300,000. Students and employees are assessed equally with regards to assessment criteria.
  • You can only apply for funding for the same measure once.

Funding can be given to various measures and projects within the following categories:

  • Environmentally friendly transport and events
  • Measures for circular economy
  • Creative and innovative ideas
  • Green master*

* Green master is a new category from 2023. This is an incentive scheme for master's theses with a focus on climate, environment and sustainability. Students at UiB can apply for NOK 10,000 each, which is financed by the UiB climate fund. Read more here.

This is not funded:

  • Applications for measures aimed at individual students or individual employees. 
  • Major climate measures related to buildings are prioritized and financed via the Estate and Facilities Management Division (EIA) at UiB, not by the climate fund.
  • The climate fund normally only covers costs related to purchases that belongs to the faculty/department's that exeeds the ordinary operating costs. For example: replacement of fossil vehicles/machines. Repair/redesign services are excluded from this rule.
  • Measures where the scheme can or should fall within the scope of teaching at the institutes/faculties.
  • The Climate Fund cannot support applicants with their own organization number outside UiB, unless it concerns student organizations specifically associated with a faculty at UiB.
  • Salary or fee to the applicants.

If your proposal has been funded:

  • Grants are provided on the condition that the project is carried out in line with the application. In case of significant changes to the project, contact the climate secretariat at UiB:  Klima2030@uib.no
  • UiB has framework agreements with external  in several areas that can be used for the measures that are given support. These should preferably be used as far as possible. 
  • UiB is subject to Norwegian law and regulations concering public procurement. See UiB's procurement map for information on current procedures: Procurements and purchases | Employee Pages | UiB 
  • Recipients must strive to implement measures and/or use the funds within one year after funding has been approved. If a situation arises which means that implementation of the measure cannot take place within a year, the climate secretariat must be contacted and an interim report must be submitted. 
  • Allocations from the Climate Fund are public information and allocations can be announced internally or externally. 
  • If the grant is not used in accordance with the conditions, the Climate Neutral UiB project's managment board can demand that all or parts of the grant be repaid. 
  • A short report with a description of the results and accounts showing the use of the grant must be sent to klima2030@uib.no within two months after the measure has been implemented.