March 27, 2016
While the Yale Carbon Charge Project is turning campus administrators, faculty, and staff into independent energy managers, a group of undergraduate students, in traditional Yale fashion, is turning those plans upside down—by engaging with the participating buildings as ad hoc energy managers.
Yale’s Carbon Charge Project is designed to use financial incentives to encourage energy efficiency by putting a price on the amount of carbon associated with each department’s energy usage. The price tag is generating more interest from building occupants across Yale in reducing their consumption.
Ted Wittenstein, Executive Director of Yale Young Global Scholars and a member of the Steering Committee for the Carbon Charge Task Force, was quick to look for ways to make his own building more efficient. So he coordinated an Energy Survey of Betts House.
Energy Surveys are a component of Yale’s energy strategy, and are regularly conducted by Yale Energy Management. Simply walking through buildings with a laser thermometer and a watchful eye is an informative experience. However, when staff examined Betts House, they brought along several students from the Sustainability Service Corps Energy Squad. These students, hired by the Office of Sustainability, work to promote awareness of ways to conserve energy around campus.
Visit the Yale Office of Sustainability’s website to read the full article.