University Energy Efficiency

Hi Zed
We haven't done a formal cbsm programme but have been doing 'monitor monitoring' occasionally over the last few years across our 100 odd workforce, many of whom often go out in the field after logging on to the computer system. We want people to switch off their monitors before they leave their desks for field work or at lunchtime. Those that do switch off when we do the rounds to check get a small treat (a chocolate fish)and a note thanking them for saving power. Over the first 18 months results hovered between 50 and 60%, then April 09 were at 65% without any obvious reason for the increase, then Oct 09 after a prompt (a network message sent that morning), 67%, Feb 2010, also with a prompt of the same variety, 79%. I'd be most interested in what you decide to do and what results you get.
Kind regards


Barbara Hammonds
Taranaki Regional Council
New Zealand

Hello, Barbara,

We have implemented our CBSM strategy starting by "1) Id barriers/benefits 2) Strategy using CBSM tools (Commitment, prompts, effective communication, norms)
3) Pilot 4) Evaluation. We have not completed 5) Community implementation or 6) The final report Getting the word out)." We have had success and failure so far. Our project covered 3 areas (rooms). In one of the rooms, we did not have administrative support. I forgot to lay the foundation for sustainability ahead of time and as a result was not able to go any further at this time. In another lab area (GIS), we were able to place prompts and let people know what we were doing. So far it has been very successful, however it has only been a week. There was an increase in participation by 40% in the first couple of days. Yesterday the monitors for stations not being used were all off (rare) in the areas where the prompts (4" x 5.5") were placed. The prompts were very visible and stated: Please Remember Shut Off Your Monitor. Thank You! placed about 46"-50" AFF, a little above the standard work plane height above the monitors, so that when people got up they would see the signs as they were standing up. We decided not to use incentives mostly because of our limited financial resources. We did a survey to try to uncover perceptions/attitudes and figure out more about our audience. At this point we will keep evaluating and "monitor monitoring," revise and get input/feedback until we are sure that we have a significant behavior change and our strategy is effective. We estimated about a $10-$20 dollar savings per room per year. Lane Community College has hundreds of rooms and computers, this could be significant. With computers that would be switched on/off more than seven times a day, we will adjust sleep setting to three minutes. Research suggests that if a monitor is not used for more than ten minutes they should be turned off. Turning off less than ten times a day will save money and not shorten the lifespan of the equipment. This was an interesting project and very important as computers are one of the fastest growing electricity users. Thank you for sharing your strategy with me. I really appreciate it.

Zed Langston
Lane Community College
Eugene, Oregon

Zed Langston
United States

Hi Zed

Ohio University, Athens Campus had a great program for energy conservation on campus that was started almost a decade ago in tandem with their energy upgrades to mechanical and electrical systems. The people involved have all changed since I was more familiar with project but there is some good information on their Campus Sustainability website under residence challenge. Each year students in the dorms were encouraged to reduce energy and compete to win prizes. It seems the program was still going strong until 2008.
Check out: https://www.ohio.edu/sustainability/ResidenceChallenge2008.htm there is contact information there as well for more recent updates. Good luck!

Susan Hall
Lura Consulting