NEWS

UNC student receives National Wildlife Federation Campus Ecology Fellowship grant

By KATIE BLIXT
UNC News Services

CHAPEL HILL -- Collin Lee, a University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill senior from Winston-Salem, has received a National Wildlife Federation Campus Ecology Fellowship grant.

Lee is the co-chairman of the Student Environmental Action Coalition, or SEAC, the nation’s largest student environmental organization, which originated at the university in 1988.

"I was very excited to receive news of the grant," Lee said. "I knew it was the boost SEAC needed for its campaign this year, so I felt very privileged and proud to do this for my organization."

Lee will use the $1,000 in grant funding to promote an initiative that would allow the university’s academic and health affairs campuses to purchase shares of "green energy" such as wind and solar power for a premium from N.C. Green Power. He also plans to educate students in local schools on green energy and hopes to start solar projects on campus.

The potential for these energy sources is significant, Lee said – the Renewable Energy Policy Project has noted that North Carolina has the highest wind energy potential in the Southeast.

According to the National Wildlife Federation, selection for the grant was based on demonstrating measurable improvement on the campus and in the surrounding community, incorporating hands-on, action-oriented efforts, and building commitment to establish and maintain the project. Any graduate or undergraduate student from any college or university can apply for the grant.

Lee is pursuing a degree in environmental studies through the College of Arts and Sciences and the Carolina Environmental Program.

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(Blixt is a junior in the School of Journalism and Mass Communication from Bermuda Run, N.C.)

Note: Contact Lee at (919) 914-6587 or cblee@email.unc.edu

News Services contact: Deb Saine (919) 962-8415