The EPFL community, and many students in particular, are mobilized within a veritable teeming of associations working for environmental and social sustainability. The Vice-Presidency for Responsible Transformation (VPT) can provide a small amount of financial support to associations wishing to carry out innovative projects linked to the themes of sustainability and equality/diversity.
Support for student projects
A call for projects is launched twice a year at the beginning of each semester: any association or project in need of funding linked to environmental or social sustainability can apply.
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Projects supported in 2023
Support for the 2nd edition of their cookbook with a focus on vegetarian dishes.
180° is a cooking association launched by UNIL-EPFL students.
Contribution towards the purchase of reusable drinkwatches.
AGEPoly is EPFL’s general student association.
Support for training in the prevention of sexist and sexual violence and invitations to local artists.
Artiphys is a festival organized by students every year in March.
Support for its Vert-Tigo expedition.
Genorobotics is a MAKE project aimed at improving techniques for identifying and monitoring biodiversity.
Sponsorship of its “butterfly effect” photo contest promoting sustainability issues.
IDM is an EPFL-UNIL association encouraging students to become responsible engineers for a fair and sustainable world.
Support for their poetry competition “Rêver dans un monde qui brûle”.
Plume is EPFL’s literary association, with a strong sustainability component in its concerns.
Support for their training needs.
RebuiLT is a materials reuse project to build a low-tech community pavilion in Ecublens.
Sponsoring an event to raise awareness of ocean preservation.
Sailowtech is a student project promoting sailing, exploration and awareness of marine biodiversity.
Sponsorship to make the event more inclusive through preventive measures and improve sustainability aspects (food, public transport, etc.).
The Student’s games are a sporting event held in April on the UNIL-EPFL campuses.
Support for the implementation of respect and sustainability measures (training, safe zone, vegetarian meals, etc.).
Sysmic is a music festival held every year in October.
Support for the Sustainability Week’s conferences, roundtables and film screenings.
Unipoly is the association for ecology and solidarity on the UNIL-EPFL campuses.
Financing organic and farmers’ seeds.
The Unipoly garden offers permaculture activities and shared practices on plots of land close to the Génopode (UNIL).
A selection of projects supported by Act for Change LAB
Act for Change LAB was an EPFL initiative supported by U-Change, a program encouraging sustainable development at Swiss universities. From 2018 to 2022, Act for Change LAB supported members of the EPFL community in promoting sustainable projects on campus. Here is a selection:
Cargo Bike Band is a touring music group traveling on cargo bikes. Anyone can join them to play at their year-round concerts.
Le Castor Freegan is a hub of the Unipoly association preparing vegan meals from unsold food to combat food waste.
Caulys is an automated, hydroponically-powered urban farming space, with the idea of approaching an “agriculture” of the future. Today, it’s a business.
CHEAP is a project designed to offer a second life to wooden pallets and objects to make furniture in a sustainable way.
D’izi Fruits is a giant fruit press run by the mechanical force of a pedal-powered merry-go-round.
Ecolens is a mobile application project designed to promote sustainable eating on campus through gamification. Today, it is a hub of Unipoly.
Epilibre is a bulk grocery store on campus. Today, it is a hub of Unipoly.
L’Espace-Transitions is a team of staff and students offering a space for exchange in the face of social and environmental emergency, and running workshops on themes linked to emotions and associative commitment. It is an integral part of UNIL’s Centre de Compétences en Durabilité.
Meubléco is a project that organizes bartering of second-hand furniture. Today, it is a hub of Unipoly.
La Pergola is a multifunctional sharing space on campus.
UP Fashion Lab is a thrift shop selling second-hand clothes at low prices at the Vortex. Today, it is a hub of Unipoly.
Verti’SKIL is a project designed to (re)-discover greenery on campus in collaboration with SKIL. The project provided an open-air laboratory for testing the benefits of the green wall.