Energy Links and Projects

The efficient use of existing energy sources and using clean energy is a mission many students are undertaking all over the country. Numerous programs are being established to save energy and encourage the use of energy resources that do not pollute. For those interested in energy programs and ideas, we recommend visiting the following site:

The Alliance to Save Energy
This site offers a useful list of project ideas for the creation of energy-efficient campuses that also utilize clean energy.

Relevant Case Studies:

Evergreen State College
In their effort to reduce their campus’ production of greenhouse gases, a small group of students at Washington’s Evergreen State College teamed up with student groups at Western Washington University to create a clean air initiative that proposed 100% clean energy use on Evergreen’s campus. Once they had announced their mission and started to work toward their goal, finding recruits was not a problem. The students proposed and voted for a small fee increase of $1 per class credit to offset the increased cost of buying clean energy from their energy provider. In cooperation with staff and faculty, the students decided that 90% of the accumulated fees would be used to pay the energy bills and the remaining 10% would be at the disposal of a newly established Clean Energy Committee, vested with the job of promoting and investing in clean energy technology and related policies. Because the students would be paying the full expense of this new energy incentive, the administration gave its full support to the project and the school smoothly transitioned into 100% clean energy use. Brad Bishop, the initiative’s student leader, advises groups that want to start a project like this to get to know their local energy company and try to create good relations with the departments on campus whose cooperation will be important for the project’s success. He also mentioned that WashPIRG volunteers (a group part of a nation-wider effort of protecting the environment and promotes sustainability) were instrumental to this project in the beginning because of the number of volunteers needed and their capacity to help a small group of dreamers get a huge project off the ground. If you are interested in doing a project like this one, consider contacting your state PIRG or creating a coalition with like-minded organizations on your campus.

Cornell University
Lest you think students cannot accomplish much because they lack the funds, students nationwide are making great strides on their campuses through pure determination and persistence. Like generations before them, student organizations today still rely on sit-ins, protests, rallies, and peaceful demonstrations in order to affect change. At Cornell University , students involved in Kyoto Now!, a group honoring the Kyoto Protocol, persisted with their demonstrations and sit-ins for weeks until they convinced the school’s administration that they weren’t going to give in on the hope of reducing Cornell’s greenhouse gas emissions to meet standards set by the Kyoto Protocol. Their demonstrations also attracted more student interest and support for the issue. The administration finally agreed to negotiations that led to the university’s commitment to Kyoto Now!’s goals. The key lesson in this story is the importance of persistence and student self-reliance. Many times, it is not in a university’s financial best interest to initiate the greening of its campus, so student initiative is not only necessary to start a project but also to promote the continuation of further environmental developments. The students of Kyoto Now! serve as a perfect example because they have continued to work with Cornell’s administrators and faculty to achieve further progress on their goals and have taken it upon themselves to initiate research that could lead to more progress. In cooperation with other student groups, Kyoto Now! has been working on plans for solar panel installation on campus buildings. Taking responsibility to develop appropriate plans for their solar program makes it clear to the administration that the students are serious about a green campus and also assures the students that progress is being made. Kyoto Now! has established a Solar Fund that will provide continuous funding for future solar projects.

Courtesy of Kyoto Now!

University of Texas at Austin
One of the primary causes of global warming is the release of carbon dioxide when vehicles burn fossil fuels; as a result, many groups are trying to find a solution by reducing emissions in cars and buses. At the University of Texas at Austin , a group of student engineers working toward sustainability has taken it upon itself to try to create a fuel that, when burned, will produce less harmful byproducts. Engineers for a Sustainable World at UT, is working on its own formula for biodiesel fuel to be used in campus shuttle buses and vehicles. The idea is to combine the waste cooking grease found in their campus cafeterias with regular diesel to create an alternative fuel that will produce fewer greenhouse gas emissions. Although the student engineers have not yet perfected their technique or their fuel, they are raising climate change awareness on their campus and actually trying to provide a solution to the global warming problem. The fuel that this group is producing does not comply with the new Texas Low Emissions Diesel law, which regulates nitrogen oxides and other emissions from diesel vehicles. As a result, it is not permitted to use its fuel on campus; however, it is taking steps to fix this roadblock. The hope is that it will someday emit less greenhouse gases and recycle waste grease at the same time. The Engineers for a Sustainable World advise students who want to start up their own project to learn their campus and regional regulations well because it will help them decide what project will be most appropriate for their specific school. For example, developing biodiesel fuel has further benefits because when the students have completed their final product, the state of Texas will award them for using cleaner fuel.

University of Southern Maine
A single student or small organization can make a tremendous difference on their campus if there is enough initiative and drive. University of Southern Maine student and former Climate Institute intern, Sarah Ferriter, won two fellowships in order to fund her plan to bring biodiesel fuel to her campus. She established the 2004 USM Biodiesel Initiative, which was supported by the National Wildlife Foundation and the Center for Environmental Citizens. Ferriter wanted to reduce the CO2 emissions of the university’s shuttle fleet by substituting biodiesel, a clean-burning fuel, for the petroleum diesel fuel already in use. Since biodiesel fuel is more expensive than traditional diesel fuel, Ferriter needed to develop a plan to cover the extra cost of operating a shuttle fleet that runs exclusively on biodiesel fuel. She proposed the establishment of a Sustainability Fund that would be funded through charging $1 fee per student per school year. Since the contribution from each student was negligible, there was strong support for the extra fee and it passed. Given the student’s solid support, the USM administration decided against instituting the $1 fee and covered the extra costs with school funds. Since the establishment of the biodiesel initiative, there have been many other campus developments inspired by Ferriter’s first steps. For example, students and staff broadened the initiative to also use biodiesel in campus buildings. So, while Sarah Ferriter is no longer a student at USM, her project lives on and other students at USM are continuing to further her environmental goals.

Courtesy of USM Biodiesel Initiative: First experiment at USM with B-20 biodiesel fuel.

Courtesy of USM Biodiesel Initiative:
Sarah Ferriter receiving the "Governor's Award for Environmental Excellence" (2004).