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Welcome to the Atlantic Colleges and Sustainability Network

Campus Climate Challenge (C3)

an inter-university competition to reduce energy use and promote sustainable living habits.

Final Residence Challenge Readings:

1st Place to LB Residence at a -9.6% Reduction

2nd Place to Neville House at a -4.0% Reduction

3rd Place to Mackenzie House at a -3.4% Reduction

Thank you to the residence for participating!

final

 

Additional Info: 

UNB Press Release

UPEI: Energy Challenge information:

http://campuscliatechallenge.com

Code of Conduct:

http://campusclimatechallenge.com/code-of-conduct/

Residence Energy Savings Tips

Energy Saving Tips

Below you will find several energy saving tips that have been designed specifically for the residences. Each of them is simple, and if all students living on campus were to do them the savings would be enormous. Are you up for the Challenge?

  1. Turn off the lights.
    One of the easiest things to do is make sure all lights – your room, the washrooms and common rooms - are turned off when they are not in use. Any light turned off will save more money and energy than a light turned on.

  2. Capture the Free Light.
    Once you have mastered the art of turning off unused lights you can increase your savings even more by only using lights when they are needed. Most residence rooms get a good amount of sunlight throughout the day. Try opening your blinds and take advantage of the natural sunlight when you are working and hanging out in your room during the day.

    Turn Off Computers and Set Energy Saving Functions.
    Leaving a desktop computer turned on overnight uses 2-4kwh of electricity - that’s 2.2 pounds of coal every night. With the vast majority of students owning personal computers and having a lifestyle in which they use their computer for several hours a day, the energy needed to power the computers in our residence halls is tremendous. Although using your computer is often necessary, it is also important that you turn it off and set the energy saving functions for when it is not in use. When energy saving functions, such as sleep mode are set, desktops use 87% less energy and laptops use 84% less. Still, even better than sleep mode is turning your computer off completely.

    Note that the Screensaver is not an energy saving function. They are designed specifically to protect the screen, and actually use the same amount of energy as when the computer is in use.
  1. Minimize your Phantom Load.
    According to ENERGYSTAR, 75% of the electricity used over the lifetime of home electronics is consumed when the products is turned off. Many of the appliances and electronics we use consume electricity even when they aren’t in use - TV’s, DVD players, videogame consoles, computers, cell phone chargers and blow dryers all consume approximately 2-6 watts when they are turned off. Phantom Load is the term that has been given to this wasted energy. The easiest way to combat Phantom Load is to unplug all appliances and electronics when they are not in use.

    When all the appliances are turned off but still plugged in, the typical dorm room uses 20-40 watts. Unplug your appliances when you're not using them, or plug them into a power bar, which you can easily switch off or unplug when you leave the room and when you go to sleep.
  1. Unplug your Mini-fridge.
    A mini-fridge accounts for over half the electricity used in the average residence room. Therefore one of the largest contributions you can make in reducing energy footprint is to unplug you refrigerator. Although it is nice to keep some things cold, is it really necessary to run your mini-fridge all year? Consider teaming up with some neighbours and sharing a fridge, or claim some space in the common room refrigerator.

  2. Take Short Showers.
    Five minutes in a standard shower can uses approximately 100 L of water and it takes a huge amount of energy to warm that water. Reducing shower time and using less hot water can dramatically cut energy and water use.
  1. The Cold-Water Wash.
    90% of energy used by laundry machines goes into heating the water. New soaps that are designed to be used in cold water cost about the same and produce similar results to traditional laundry detergents. In addition, make sure you are washing a full load and efficiently using that water.
  1. Use a Drying Rack instead of the Dryer.
    A dryer consumes anywhere from 4 to 6 kWh. Use a clothes line or drying rack and save that energy.
  1. Don’t leave your Radio/Stereo playing while you’re away.
    Be sure to turn off your radio and stereo before you leave for class, dinner, or home for the weekend. Every bit helps!
  1. Talk!
    Energy saving is a hot topic! Talk with your floor and learn about how each of you can do better. Discuss and share ideas. You will probably come up with some creative ideas that are a lot of fun. This is also the best way to learn about how this challenge fits into broader scale environmental initiatives and the role we as university students have as environmentalists, conservationists, and aware global citizens.