03101 Energy Conservation in Dormitories

We, the generation that faces the next century, can add the solemn injunction that if we don't do the impossible, we shall be faced with the unthinkable. — Petra Kelly

The first question you’re probably asking yourself is — why does this matter? I’m not paying the energy bill for this dorm room.

Actually. . . you do pay the energy bill for the dorm room. The price of room and board I includes the cost of the energy used to operate the dormitory.

And in any event — do you remember those pesky permaculture ethics we talked about in Section 0? About those ethics, we can observe —

It’s never wrong to do the right thing.

It’s never right to do the wrong thing.

Nor can you achieve a good end with bad means.

Now that we have that clear . . .

If you have a thermostat in your room, turn it down in winter and up in the summer.

During the winter. . . Heat your body and individual space rather than the whole room or apartment. Dress for the season when indoors and at night. Extra blankets are a better energy deal than running the central heating all night.

During the summer . . . keep the wind moving with fans and you will remain comfortable even with the thermostat turned up a bit.

Your windows are like open holes to the outdoors. During the winter, keep them well-covered whenever the sun does not shine through them. During the summer, cover them during the day. Several layers of blankets and curtains will work well for you.

Turn the lights off when you aren’t in the room.

Don’t leave your computer and its associated peripherals up and running when not in use.

Beware of ghost loads. Plug televisions and other electronic equipment into extension chords or outlet strips that have on-off switches. Turn them off with the switch to make sure they aren’t drawing ghost loads while you think they are off.

Take short showers and conserve water by not running water while brushing teeth, shaving, cleaning contact lenses, etc.

Drive less. Walk, ride a bicycle, take public transportation, and carpool more. Driving an automobile is one of the Top 3 major energy problems of modern life.

Use rechargeable smaller batteries, and recharge them with a solar battery charger such as this one —

http://www.ccrane.com/more-categories/batteries-chargers/solar-powered-battery-charger.aspx (I receive no consideration from Crane Co. for this recommendation. I am merely a satisfied repeat customer.)

Get your roommates on board with the energy conservative program!

So as it turns out, there is actually a lot you can do about your energy consumption while you live in a college dormitory! What matters is that you do what you can, with what you have, where you are.

Use the permaculture organization you started on campus to organize a competition between dormitory buildings to see which building can reduce its energy and water footprint the most.

Your school administration will like you a lot for this effort. It will give you some cred you might be able to exchange for something else on your permacultured college list.

You are in college to learn skills that will help you in life. Using less energy is one of those important skills. Learning to be energy conservative is one of the skills you will need to make it through your life. The sooner you start, the more you will learn.