Sacramento State announced on April 22 that it will celebrate Earth Day with a community fair featuring more than $1.8 million in grant-funded sustainability projects.
The event, organized by the Office of Sustainability, aims to showcase the university’s efforts to support clean transportation and environmental initiatives. Activities at the Main Quad include an e-waste collection, information tables, games, music, and a display of a new electric-powered Hornet Shuttle.
Director of Energy & Sustainability Ryan Todd said that recent state efforts have made more grants available for electric vehicle infrastructure. “California is pushing hard to improve the electric vehicle charging infrastructure statewide, so we’re seeing a lot more grants available,” Todd said. “We don’t have the money to put in this infrastructure or buy electric shuttles, so we’re leveraging grants. It’s an obvious benefit to our campus as well as to the community.”
The university has received several significant grants: $1 million from the California Energy Commission through Sacramento Municipal Utility District for six fast-charging stations; $384,000 from Volkswagen Environmental Mitigation Trust for two electric shuttles; $255,000 from Sacramento Municipal Air Quality Management District for three solar-powered charging stations; and $222,000 from CalRecycle for water bottle filling stations across campus. The new charging stations are open to public use.
Todd highlighted challenges in expanding electric vehicle adoption: “California wants to transition to more electric vehicles, but the biggest challenge is having the charging infrastructure,” he said. He noted that Sac State’s proximity to Highway 50 makes it ideal for fast-charging access: “It’s a main thoroughfare… people can pop off the freeway like they would for gas and hang out for 20 minutes to fully charge.”
Jeff Dierking, director of University Transportation and Parking Services (UTAPS), explained how these upgrades will support both sustainability goals and daily operations by reducing emissions and congestion while offering alternatives such as public transit connections. The Hornet Shuttle fleet now includes both compressed natural gas vehicles and all-electric options.
Construction on fast-charging stations will begin in mid-May while three solar-powered Level II chargers are already operational on campus. Waste & Sustainability Analyst Laura Gonzalez-Ospina reported ongoing installation of water bottle-filling stations throughout campus—an effort intended to reduce single-use plastic waste.
“Water bottle filling stations help reduce the number of plastic water bottles people buy that end up in the landfill,” Todd said.
