More than $5 million (£3.5m) has been awarded to four colleges and universities in New York to help them implement clean energy solutions that fight climate change.

The City College of New York Building Performance Lab, New York Medical College, Syracuse University and Vassar College will receive more than $1 million (£0.7m) each to develop “comprehensive and cost-effective” projects that advance building decarbonisation, including those that will implement net zero energy performance in retrofit and new construction applications,

The projects are expected to save 4,604 metric tons of carbon every year in total – equivalent to removing almost 4,000 cars from the road annually, supporting Governor Andrew M. Cuomo’s ambition for an 85% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.

Each project will share best practice by providing guidance documents to distribute on campus and at higher education events for replication planning, funding and implementation.

Governor Cuomo said: “Colleges and universities are at the heart of inspiring the next generation of climate leaders to create and implement sustainable clean energy solutions that fight climate change,.

“The Energy to Lead competition has created an opportunity to empower students, professors and leadership to help New York deliver low carbon solutions for one of our toughest areas to decarbonise—buildings—while fostering a great sense of campus pride around the ability to create a greener and cleaner future on campuses and in surrounding communities.”