Our latest "Green Thumbs-Up" is given to the Residence Hall Association for its series of "Energy Challenges" in the residence halls -- a competitive strategy to actively engage our on-campus student population in reducing their energy use. Our latest "Green Thumbs-Up" is given to the Residence Hall Association for its series of "Energy Challenges" in the residence halls -- a competitive strategy to actively engage our on-campus student population in reducing their energy use.
In spring 2006, the Residence Hall Association (RHA) sponsored the first Energy Challenge, a friendly competition between residence halls to reduce their electricity consumption for a specified period. The "biggest loser" (of consumed energy) is the winner of each challenge round.
Last year's RHA president, Andrew Bernier '07, commissioned the creation of a special "loving cup" for the Energy Challenge winner. And thus the Lord Poole Juice Cup was born, sustainably crafted from recycled auto parts. "Juice" in this case refers to energy; "Lord Poole" (Joshua Poole '07) created this unique trophy. This fall, RHA leaders Cliff Engel and Tristan Fowler continued the Energy Challenge program, sponsoring three rounds of competition.
In mid-October, three Quad halls -- Boothroyd, Tallcott, and Rowland -- went "meter-to-meter." RHA provided information to hall residents on how to reduce their energy consumption, and at the end of the two-week challenge period, Rowland Hall was declared the winner. The winners of each challenge round are rewarded with a pizza party sponsored by Papa John's Pizza, and they win bragging rights to the coveted Lord Poole Juice Cup.
From the waning weeks of October into early November, the two Towers squared off, with West Tower winning the challenge to reduce its energy consumption. And in the third round, held in mid-November, Terraces 3-5 met on the field, with Terrace 5 leading the downward charge to win its own challenge.
There are plans to continue to conduct several additional Energy Challenges in spring 2008, and to declare an overall campus challenge winner for the entire academic year. And RHA hopes that the energy reduction strategies that residents learn to employ during each competition period will be continued throughout the rest of the year.
Every kilowatt of energy saved through these Energy Challenges is both an economic AND an environmental win for Ithaca College.
For more about the Energy Challenge, read this Ithacan article: http://theithacan.org/am/publish/news/200711_Campus_residence_halls_compete_for_sustainability_award.shtml
To view all "Green Thumbs-Up" citations, complete with photos, visit:
https://www.ithaca.edu/sustainability/outreach_greenthumbsup.php
https://www.ithaca.edu/intercom/article.php/20071212163459811