Almost all Ball State University students conserve energy by shutting off lights that aren't needed — mostly for environmental and social reasons rather than to save the school money, a new survey shows.
The new information on campus attitudes about energy — and a set of recommendations for saving more — comes from a survey conducted last semester by Ball State Energy Action Team (BEAT), a student led group trying to encourage energy conservation.
"The results showed a high interest in energy conservation among students, and it was encouraging to see that they are willing to potentially be part of the BEAT team, as we have the same causes they do, to use electricity rationally," public relations graduate student Anca Topliceanu said in an e-mail interview this week.
The survey found that about 96 percent of students turn off the lights when they leave a room. When asked why, 69 percent said because it is "the right thing to do." Only 44 percent said they would be motivated to conserve energy knowing that it saves the university money. Sixty-five percent said preventing carbon dioxide emissions was a concern. Four percent said "nothing would motivate me to conserve energy."
Although Kamila Carmichael, a senior political science major, admits to driving around for sometimes more than an hour when she is stressed our or bored, she said she had other ways of conserving energy.
"I unplug my phone and computer chargers when I'm not using them," she said.
BEAT was established in the beginning of the spring semester "to give a clearer image of the green personality of the Ball State campus," Topliceanu said. About 300 students responded to the 10-question survey.
Besides turning off unneeded lights, students said they conserve energy by turning down the heat in the winter and unplugging unused power strips and power cords. Perhaps proving that there is no universal agreement on anything, 2.4 percent said, "I don't care – there is an endless supply of electricity."
The survey found that about 63 percent of students were interested in learning new ways of conserving energy.
BEAT sponsored several green initiatives during the semester, such as Earth Day, Earth Hour in the residence halls and a video contest about student conservation ideas.
The group also plans to draft a campus-wide energy policy and make specific recommendations for residence halls. The suggestions include continue turning off unneeded lights, placing occupancy-sensor lights around campus, using more natural lighting, more energy efficient bulbs and less artificial lighting and reducing the heating and cooling differential in campus buildings.
"The main BEAT goal is to create an atmosphere of energy consumption awareness on campus for students, faculty and administrators," Topliceanu said. "What we did so far is just a small step, paving the way for the next semesters.
Read More
Three Air Jam teams take home the win
October 12, 2012Nineteen teams shimmied, shook and flipped for a sold out John R. Emens Auditorium on Thursday night during the 25th annual Air Jam.
Bill Clinton Speaks at North Central High School
October 12, 2012Former President's Speech Could Have Effect on State Senate Race
