Hi,
We are preparing to launch an energy conservation campaign for the school year that will start in August. I've been creating energy profiles for each of the buildings on campus and expect to create posters for each building to show the occupants how much energy they use and set a 20% reduction goal for the occupants in that building. The challenge is how to structure the message so that 1) it attracts attention of people who are bombarded by messages, and 2) motivates behavior change. If you have done anything similar or if you've seen campaigns elsewhere that you think is particularly effective, I would like to see your marketing materials and/or hear any advice/opinions you have to offer.
Thanks,
Terri
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Sustainability Office
Energy Conservation Campaign
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G'day Terri
I strongly recommend you jump onto the CERES website www.ceres.org.au and have a look at the energy component of the Sustainable Schools education modules. We right energy management plans for schools and a large part is behaviour change. Our experience has been that it is not enough just to put up signage with simple action. look for emotive images with real impacts. Find out what motivates the kids in your part of the world and link energy conservation to the things they feel passionate about. To give you an example our community is a peninsula and surrounded by surf beaches. Obviously the surf and water activity occupies a large part of our children's lives. Global warming has potentially a huge impact on marine environments and so may effect their enjoyment of those beaches. We have been successful in motivating students by having them come up with a project that will benefit their immediate environment and then offer them a percentage of the savings from the energy efficiency programme. vested interest can work well. Saving GHG has a visible tangible and local benefit.
Cheers
Mark
Hi Terri
Successful at some Eco-Schools in South Africa has been creating large, visible, paper bar-graphs on school walls which graphically display baselines and ongoing reductions. Kids do the measuring and recording and maintain the graphs. Alongside the graph one could display the goal and celebrate when its achieved.
Regards
SUE BELLINGER
ECO-SCHOOLS REGIONAL CO-ORDINATOR:
GAUTENG, SOUTH AFRICA
Phone/Fax: +27 011 463 4902
http://www.wildlifesociety.org.za/educecoschools.htm
www.eco-schools.org
Terri:
We have funded the University of Toronto's ReWire project, which sounds like it is tackling similar issues. Their website is http://www.sustainability.utoronto.ca/ and it will take you to the project itself and the contact info.
Hope that helps.
Bryan Young,
Manager Conservation Fund
Ontario's Conservation Bureau
A Division of the Ontario Power Authority
[email protected]