Energy blogThe next task in our Comenius Project –

HUGES

Nowadays, we use energy in lots of different activities. Although scientific and technological advance have allowed a more efficient production, distribution and use of energy, most countries have increased the amount of energy they are globally using.

We are also aware of the fact that the kind of energy we use also affects the environment in general. Environmental problems such as global warming or climate changes must be quickly solved.

In the near future we will have to reduce our dependency on non-renewable energies the sources of which will soon come to an end.

So reducing the global amount of energy we are now using is essential and it should be the first step to build a sustainable world as far as energy is concerned.

Just have a look at the following numbers and think about them… Energy

consumption per year

(kg of oil per capita)

BASQUE COUNTRY – 3280

HUNGARY - 2542

PORTUGAL - 2210

REUNION ISLAND - 1051

SWEDEN – 5414

However, when we think about saving energy we should have in mind that all the objects and products we use every day are or were related to some kind of energy consumption. Energy is always used when producing something, when carrying it to a different place, when we are using it until it disappears. Using energy in a sustainable way necessarily implies being aware of all that.

Our task: School environment

In terms of energy, schools represent around 25% of the global amount of energy consumption. We usually spend a long time at school but we rarely think about it as a place where we spend a lot of energy and that it costs a lot of money.

So now our task is to do some research, to collect some information, to identify some problems and to find some solutions in order to improve the situation at our schools.Let’s start working step by step!

Did you know that…

producing meat requires 14.7 more energy

than producing vegetables?

Did you know that…

the amount of energy spent by

electrical appliances in

standby mode

represents 8% of the

global amount of electricity

consumption in a

General researchLet’s try to find out how we use the following goods and products.Are we worried about saving them or are we wasting them?Form small groups of work and write a short report about the situation of

the indicated products in your school by trying to get the answers to the questions below.

Food

Does your school have a canteen and a cafeteria? Do most students have their meals there?

Is there much food waste? What happens to it? Is there any kind of food recycling or a composting system?

Is most food natural or industrial food? Is there any type of concern related to food choices at your school?

Do people at your school try to choose environmentally friendly packages?

Do you recycle those packages? Are the products you eat mostly from local places and markets or

do they come from distant places that require some kind of long transportation?

Electricity What are the usual levels of electricity consumption at your

school? Does your school have a good natural lighting system or is

artificial illumination usually necessary? How long are light bulbs turned on during the day, do you have an idea?

Do people usually leave the lights on when there is nobody in the room?

What kind of light bulbs are used at your school? Are there automatic lighting systems that automatically turn

on or off when there are people coming? Are there many electrical devices (computers, TV sets, video

projectors, interactive boards, etc) at your school? Are they completely turned off when they are not being used or are they in standby mode?

Did you know that…

about 60% of the energy

coming from heating

systems is wasted?

Did you know that…

for each ton of paper that

we recycle , we avoid

cutting down 14 trees, wasting

50000 liters of water and

two barrels of oil ?

Did you know that…

the energy you can save by recycling a juice can is

enough to have a TV set

on for three hours?

Are the household gadgets used at school new or old? Are they energy efficient?

Paper

How much paper is used by printers and photocopy machines in your school?

Are there specific places to recycle paper? Where? Do teachers and students regularly use them?

Are photocopies made on both sides of a sheet of paper? Do you use recycled paper? Are people wasting paper in the toilets, in the canteen or in the

cafeteria? Can some of those products be replaced by reusable objects?

Can you exchange information and documents through the Internet (mail, Moodle, wiki) and this way reduce the amount of paper you are using? Do you usually use it this way?

Heating /cooling systems

Do you need any kind of heating or cooling system at your school? What type of heating system is used? What source of energy does it

require? Are there any renewable energy systems at your school? How energy efficient are those systems? Is energy consumption related to those systems very high? What’s

the average temperature in the classroom when the heating system is being used?

Do people usually close the windows and the doors to avoid losing energy?

Does the school building have a good insulation system? Are there double paned windows?

Containers – glass, plastic and metal

Do you have much waste related to glass containers and other packages at school?

Are there specific places to recycle those packages? How many are they? Are they enough and in the correct places?

Do students usually separate that waste by recycling the containers or do they put them in the common bin?

Do people at school try to reduce the number of containers they use by choosing bigger containers or reusing them?

Which products do you choose the most? Fresh products or packed products?

Share your researchThrough the wiki share your results with the other countries participating in the project. Discuss your points of view and present strategies and practical suggestions to make your schools more environmentally friendly

and to save energy.

Investigate problems and find solutionsNow each school should concentrate on a specific product according to the list below. - Basque country – food;

- Hungary – electricity;- Portugal – paper;- Reunion Island –waste (bottles and cans);- Sweden – heating.

At this level it is very important to do a deeper research about the real situation in each school.

Go through the previous questions again, analyse your results, identify the problems and get a real diagnostic of energy consumption at your school related to each of the products above. Talk to the headmaster/mistress, teachers, helpers, other students, etc and try to get as much information as possible about consumption levels, systems and procedures.

After identifying the problems, plan some practical solutions to them. Organize groups of work, plan your action and share activities. Don’t forget to get your school involved into this plan. If you need, look for some help through local institutions.

Ready for actionChoose a week to carry out your plan. During that week pay attention to people’s reactions, try to figure out if they agree with the plan and take notes about any possible problems or difficulties.

You may take some photos of some of those activities.

EvaluationA week later, it’s time to evaluate the results and to share your conclusions. What results have you achieved? What was the most difficult? How did the school community react? What have you learnt?

Create a document (powerpoint presentation, etc) to share all the results and conclusions related to this energy adventure.

Let’s change the colours of our schools …

…Let’s build a green energy school!

January, 2012