Hope College is Working to Make Sustainable Investment Sustainable 

By: Jordan Craft, Kate Mahoney, Hui Min Mak 

If you hang around Hope College for a while, you may notice a group of students walking around staring at light bulbs or spending time in the mechanical room of the gym instead of the weight room. If you see us and our spreadsheets, please feel free to wave. We're not lost – we're simply doing our job as interns with Hope's Green Revolving Fund (GRF). The GRF operates on a unique circular model: money saved through sustainability improvements is reinvested in the fund for future projects. By making wise investments and reinvesting savings back into the GRF, the funds can grow and continue to support long-term investments into the future. Our mission to reduce emissions and decrease energy use and operating expenses is deeply rooted in our Christian faith. By focusing on optimization around campus, the GRF can support the values Hope College strives for and encourage a mindset of preservation and thriving in economic, ecological, and social systems around campus and the greater Holland area. 

Students in one of the GRF projects partnered with Hope’s Physical Plant and Athletics staff for more than a year to overhaul the DeVos Fieldhouse lighting. Initial discussions with the Athletics staff revealed a major pain point surrounding the existing lighting system for the arena: the complicated app system was not user-friendly, resulting in system lockouts that left the lights on for days at a time. Additionally, the lights were set to their competition setting even when the stadium was not in use. The GRF team’s measurements showed brightness could be cut in half and still be on par with a typical gym’s lighting. The control system was redesigned with a “practice mode” at 50% brightness, a full 100% option for NCAA live events, and an automatic overnight dim to an emergency setting. These updates made the system more user-friendly and prevented overuse, which is projected to save $2,000–$3,000 annually (about the equivalent of powering 2–3 Holland homes). 

Another pain point for the Athletics staff involved the dim outdoor lights surrounding DeVos Fieldhouse. Hope College takes pride in welcoming spectators of all ages to athletic events, and dim outdoor lighting – combined with icy winter conditions – is a recipe for disaster. This past season, all fixtures were replaced with downward-facing LEDs, which improved visibility, reduced light pollution, and increased efficiency. GRF team calculations showed an additional $3,500 in annual savings for the campus, resulting from these changes. 

Overall, the GRF implemented $184,000 in projects in just 2.5 years with an anticipated ROI of approximately 18% annually. In the ‘24-’25 fiscal year, GRF investments saved the electrical equivalent of approximately 25 homes and 150 tons of CO2 emissions. Importantly, the GRF is using these savings to reinvest in future projects, so our savings and our impact will both continue to grow. With Hope’s GRF, students like us are striving to make Hope’s investments in sustainability truly sustainable. While the changes being made to Hope College can seem complicated, similar changes can be made on different scales – in your own home, your daily commute or your business. Simple changes – such as switching to LED light bulbs and reducing drafts in your home, or more complex efforts like upgrading an industrial compressor or commercial air handler unit at work – can have a significant and positive impact on energy use. And oftentimes, this investment results in savings within a short time. With the Hope College GRF, we are targeting those “bang-for-the-buck” energy-saving projects around campus, even if we look a little silly walking around with our clipboards and spreadsheets. 

If you are interested in learning more about the initiative or looking to get involved, visit https://hope.edu/offices/sustainability/holland-hope-college-sustainability-institute/green-revolving-fund.html

Jordan Craft is a Junior studying Mechanical Engineering, Physics, and Mathematics 

Kate Mahoney is a Junior studying Biomedical/Mechanical Engineering, Kinesiology, and Mathematics 

Hui Min Mak is a Sophomore studying Electrical Engineering, Global Health, and Mathematics