Members of the Wisconsin Public Interest Research Group’s campaign Big Red Go Green kicked off their monthlong residence hall energy competition Tuesday, which will pit dormitories against one another in a friendly competition geared toward raising awareness and educating students about environmental practices.
By comparing energy consumption numbers for the month of April with a five-year average for university dorms, the competition will measure residents’ energy reduction and conservation efforts.
In last year’s inaugural event, dorms across campus reduced their average energy consumption by 22 percent, according to a WISPIRG statement.
“The goal of the competition is to educate students on how they can reduce energy use in their everyday lives and to show them that their actions make a difference,” BRGG coordinator Alicia Geary said in a statement. “Once the competition is over, we want residents to have formed good habits and continue to use their energy efficiently.”
Samantha McKeough, BRGG intern and event organizer, explained this is an important event because students in the dorms are moving out of their houses and living on their own for the first time. This is an opportunity for them to start forming energy efficient habits to take with them into the future.
Newly independent college students are not always as conscious as they need to be about their energy consumption habits, according to Geary.
“I think that it really depends on whether they pay their energy bills,” Geary said. “In dorms, you don’t see that bill, and many new students have never had to pay it before, so I don’t think they’re as conscious about it.”
McKeough agreed, adding when students live on their own, they need to start thinking about things they may not have thought about before, such as turning off lights, unplugging power strips and towel-drying your hair.
It is the small things that make the big difference, Geary said.
“Things like unplugging your cell phone charger or computer, or getting everyone in the dorm to watch ‘Lost’ at the same time in one room (make a difference),” she added.
In addition to coordinating the competition, BRGG is continually working with university officials to update energy practices in all university buildings.
One project currently being pushed by BRGG, according to Geary, is getting energy monitoring systems on dorms.
“It would be something where you put a monitor on each building and anyone can look at any time of the day to see how much energy was being used in your dorm,” Geary said. “It breaks it down by person; you can look at how much coal is being burned at the time, how much CO2 is being emitted and other things. It’s really cool.”
University officials have also agreed to get professional assessments for transitioning buildings with pools to fully thermal energy, according to Geary.
