Reducing our impact on the environment from energy consumption requires multiple considerations. Is the source of energy that you consume renewable? Does the transformation of energy from one form to another produce unwanted side effects (e.g. greenhouse gas emissions, pollution to local environment, damage to surrounding communities)? Furthermore, are you using energy in the most efficient way possible? In this workshop, we will cover a brief overview of the power grid from production to consumer, and provide actionable changes for students to make to improve their energy conservation.
Slides
Links
- Build a drying rack for your clothes
- Insulate your water heater
- Grow your own food in an urban garden
- Compost at your apartment
- Install window film, weather strip windows, and make draft stoppers
- Make thermally insulating curtains (and hang them without drilling holes)
- Reduce your standby power usage (using advanced power strips)
- Repair your electronics
- Mend your clothes…using a patch!
- Learn how to write to a politician!
- Reuse (free) supplies for your projects with Trash Nothing or the Buy Nothing Project
- Be safe using these resources! Follow these safety tips for meetups and exchanges with strangers
Personal Energy Audit
(Adapted from the Alaska Sea Week Curriculum Series, Volume VII)
Read and mark the answers that best describe what you do to save or use energy. Then total up your points for each section. What areas are costing you points? What can you do to improve? Do not worry if you are losing points for questions marked with a *, as long as you scored highly on the other questions marked with a * in the same section.
In the winter...
| Always | Mostly | Sometimes | Rarely | Never | |
| Do you turn the heat down and use lots of blankets at night?* | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| Use an electric blanket?* | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| Just keep the whole home warm? | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
For your food...
| Always | Mostly | Sometimes | Rarely | Never | |
| Do you grow some of your own produce? | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| Go foraging? | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| Get your food from local farmers and markets? | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| Get your food from within the continental US? | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| Get your food from overseas?* | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
For your eating habits...
| Always | Mostly | Sometimes | Rarely | Never | |
| Do you eat food from the four basic food groups every day (with minimal processing?) | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
In your spare time...
| Always | Mostly | Sometimes | Rarely | Never | |
| Do you read, get outside, or otherwise avoid screentime? | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| Ride in motorized vehicles? | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
| Spend your time in front of a screen? | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
Regarding your home's insulation...
| Always | Mostly | Sometimes | Rarely | Never | |
| Does it maintain temperature without AC? | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
Are your windows...
| Single-paned | Double-paned | Triple-paned | |
| Window type | 0 | 2 | 4 |
| Yes | No | |
| Plastic-coated | 4 | 0 |
| Heat-mirrored | 4 | 0 |
Does your house temperature in the winter require...
| Sweaters and jackets | Long sleeves and pants | Shorts and t-shirt | Swim suits |
| 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 |
Is your hot water heater...
| Yes | No | ||
| Insulated? | 4 | 0 | |
| Set to 120°F or less? | 4 | 0 | |
| On demand, instead of having a tank? | 4 | 0 |
When you use the oven…
| Always | Mostly | Sometimes | Rarely | Never | |
| Do you cook multiple dishes at once? | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| Cook one large dish? | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| Cook single-serving meals? | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
In the summer...
| Always | Mostly | Sometimes | Rarely | Never | |
| Do you open windows to stay cool? | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| Do you use a fan? | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| Use air conditioning? | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
For transportation…
| Always | Mostly | Sometimes | Rarely | Never | |
| Do you ride a bike or walk?* | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| Take public transit?* | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| Carpool?* | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| Drive yourself, or have someone drive you? | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
When you wash your clothes...
| Always | Mostly | Sometimes | Rarely | Never | |
| Do you hang them to dry, instead of using an electric dryer? | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
At home...
| Always | Mostly | Sometimes | Rarely | Never | |
| Do you turn off lights when you aren’t using them? | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| Do you shut off the TV, radio, computers, and other appliances when you’re not using them? | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
For your possessions…
| Always | Mostly | Sometimes | Rarely | Never | |
| Do you get things as hand-me-downs and second-hand stores? | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| Do you repair things when they break instead of buying a replacement? | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| How often do you buy brand new products? | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |