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A Call for Sustainability

George Goes Green

George Goes Green

George Gets Ingenious 09

Congratulations to Nicolas Bash '10 for winning the 2009 George Gets Ingenious competition!

Here is the winning entry:
I have been interested in the "Green Movement" for some time now. It has been amazing to watch the growth and popularity of the movement, as everyone seems to be jumping on board, however it seems to be lacking substance. Useful for marketing strategies and public approval, this movement will not change many of the fundamental waste problems we have today if it is not systematically applied. So I propose the following ideas for Washington College:

Idea 1:
Compost. We already have parts of the compost system in place here at Washington College. Small compost bins, plastic reusable containers, and compostible cups are steps in the right direction, but will not dramatically change our footprint. There is a disgusting amount of food that gets wasted through the process of cooking and eating food. If we were to take what we wasted, compost it and sell/use/distribute our waste compost to local farms and gardeners we would drastically alter the amount of waste we send to landfills. This would require the following three things:
First, that the school make sure that all paper products used on campus are compostible. This goes for all paper plates, trays, cups, napkins, and dine ware. Print paper and all administrative needs as well could be included. These products can be bought through Eco-Products a company out of Boulder, CO.
Second, that the school invest in an industrial sized composter. Hot Rot produces and delivers such machines. The school could invest in one for $60,000. The machine will produce and compost up to a ˝ ton a day. This compost in turn would be good for all soil-based needs. The composter runs on 2 kW a day and operates within a chamber that locks in smells, a huge concern for anyone who has ever composted.
Third and finally, the school must implement the necessary infrastructure for the operation. This is the easiest of the three. The school has plenty of land for the machine, which only measures 8 ft by 25 ft. Placing compost bins around campus is even easier. A system could be set in place to help local farms donate their waste products in return for healthy compost.
I understand that in the current economic situation spending money on experimental green operations is bottom on the list, however there are several resources that could help make this project a lot less expensive. MARBIDCO is a local firm that offers grants to energy efficient green programs. The U.S. government in their most recent stimulus package has stated that they will provide a 30% tax write off or a 30% investment in green programs. Also there are government grants available as well. The local economic development center has expressed their interesting as well, a possible co-organized project between the school and the town could result in a split cost program. Even with the cost of the machine and the increased costs we would see in paper products we would be pioneering how we deal with garbage in this country, and with the plethora of available funding there really is no excuse. Virginia Tech has already started, how long do we have to wait.

Idea 2:
Although not as complex, it is certainly as efficient and many of the same funding opportunities apply. Innovative Glass, a company out of NY manufactures a glass film they call SPD Smartglass. I had an opportunity to see the glass while at the solar decathlon a competition held in Washington D.C. that encouraged engineering programs at universities around the world to compete to built the most energy efficient home.
This SPD Smartglass was used in the University of Santa Clara's home. It was used as an experiment to showcase the glass and express its potential energy saving benefits. The glass was tested by the University who found that it can reduce the temperature in a room by up to 10 degrees and provide serious energy savings.
The glass is produced with a film that operates on a tiny electrical current. The current is passed through the film at varying levels to create varying levels of tint. This can be very effective for buildings and rooms looking to preserve room temperature when no one is using the room. Lights off, windows tinted. If the school were to replace many of the windows we have in our classrooms with this glass we would see incredible results in our energy costs. Obviously the glass is slightly more expensive then the current windows we have and that is a factor. The availed government programs apply to this green program as well and if we could reduce our energy savings by 10% why wouldn't we.

Idea 3:
Solar Heat our water systems. There is no reason why we do not solar heat the water that goes into the showers in our dorms. Hotels in Ocean city are currently using heating systems that allow them to reduce their water heating costs by 50%. By placing solar panels on the roof and installing a water tank next to our current boilers, we can heat the water from the power generated by the solar panels and feed it into our current water system. Normal boilers serve 123 degree water temperature, the water found in the bottom of the tank (the coldest part) of the tank connected to solar panels on February 12th in ocean city this year was 129 degrees. Temperature of the solar panels was 149 degrees, and that was the middle of the winter and it only took 45 minutes. The boiler never had to turn on as the water being fed to the system was hotter than the required temperature. This is a great way to save money and efficiently heat our water here at school. Hotels in Ocean city were seeing the costs of the solar panels and the water system absolved in 6 years without financing. With financing we could see saving right away. Same government programs apply for these costs as well.

Thanks to everyone who participated! All entries eventually influence the sustainability movement at WC, as our goal each year is to find out what those who live and work at the college think are the most important areas of improvement. The submissions were judged based on these criteria: George Gets Ingenious Rules and Guidelines.

View entries from 2008 and 2007.

2009 Entries

Anastassia Doubovskaya
What is really shocking on campus is the amount of the electricity wasted. If one just thinks that America makes up 5 % of the world population but uses 25% of the world energy is utterly unacceptable. People should take responsibility not only for future generations but also for all the people living on out planet. We have to raise awareness and encourage students use less energy and switch off lights when not in use. However, it easier said than done. That's why I think the only way to save energy is when students start appreciating it. The only way do to it is to charge students for the electricity they use in their rooms. It is like pay as you go scheme. They get a bill every month for the energy they have used in their rooms. It doesn't necessarily need to be a high price, it could be even smaller price than what the college pays for the electricity. But, it will definitely be a good incentive to switch off lights when leaving a room. If your roommate doesn't do it, you will remind her/him to do that, making sure you both try to save energy because you will split the bill. Also, in the bathroom, in the hall, in the leaving room, and laundry room the light is on all the time. So, the dorm will be charged and the residents will split a bill for the shared areas. This will encourage everyone to switch off the lights, and if you see someone not doing it you will remind that person to do that. In that way, everyone takes an interest in saving energy and working as a team in making sure no energy is wasted. It should not be difficult to install energy meter in every room, and a bill at the end of the month is there to remind you that the electricity is not free. I have a feeling that everyone thinks that energy is free and will never run out, that's why leaving lights on all the time.
In terms of the classrooms and other buildings- motion lights should be installed. And the energy saving bulbs must be used. They provide as much light as normal ones, but they use 4 times less energy than normal bulbs! And they are cheaper than normal bulbs. They are already widely used in Europe.
The college will save lots of money, and would wonder what to do with it. I have a unique idea. In the spring time, college will buy lots of trees, and encourage students to plant 1 tree or more each and place a small tag with their name on the tree. Thus, every person will plant a tree and take a responsibility for that tree during their time in college. In 4 years they will see their tree grown and they will feel proud in front of their family and friends that this tree is theirs. They will be given advice about the ways to maintain a tree. It will be especially rewarding in the spring when trees blossom during cherry blossom. It will help with pollution and will beautify the campus. It helps the environment in overall as well. It will attract many birds and thus, creating a more environmentally friendly environment. So, I think every person who comes to college should be encouraged to plant a tree. There is plenty of space on campus, also along the roads and in the town. I am sure the future generations will thank us for the trees we plant now. Who knows- maybe not so many will be left after all the Amazon trees are cut.

Christopher Waldeck '11
The short answer to the question of how we save the environment is food. Time after time it has been shown that what a person eats affects the environment far more than what he or she drives. The nitrogen and abrasive pesticides necessary for growing the nutrient-void corn we feed to cows as we fatten them for slaughter has high costs for the planet (and the cows, which develop huge ulcers from the corn products and by-products they are fed), nevermind, for now, the inability to use this corn for ethanol or other purposes, or simply not planting it at all so we do not cut down forests to make room for the fields.
My idea for Washington College is cheap, very cheap. The space it would take is already bought and paid for, currently unused, but is out of the way for all students while being very close to where they live. No one who doesn't want to take part would be hassled at all, but for those who do, you won't have to walk very far at all to make a big difference. My idea is simply this: to plant vegetable gardens on the roofs of the dormitory buildings. The roofs are flat on most of the dorms and only the people who are registered as part of the project will have access to the roofs. All we have to pay for are hand rails for the buildings and wooden containers for the gardens (while they are in these containers, we can spread the weight out evenly with how the legs are engineered and, at the same time, keep the dirt and water away from the roof itself). Though we do not have to only grow vegetables, if we do, there is a dietary alternative to the dining hall (though this food could be dispensed within the dining hall or at other areas within the new facility) and an opportunity for students to eat home-grown, organic food, which would help offset the other foods in their diets' effect on the environment. This project is one where both the people and the environment are benefitted and neither needs to give up or go without anything it currently enjoys, which makes this project exceedingly implementable and an easy sell to students.
If we chose to sell the food for a small fee (which students could put on their student ID's), we could offset the costs of the project quickly for the College, and I'm sure the opportunity to omit a few of the angry emails the administration gets about Dining Hall food would be welcomed with open arms. The gardens are an easy way to build respect and community within the dormitories themselves and a great way to show Washington College in a very unique light to prospective students. It pays for itself with the dollars from those who already come here and those it attracts. Fiscally, communally, and environmentally, this is a good idea.
A few watering cans, handrails, and wooden boxes later, you have not only another food choice for students, an opportunity to learn about horticulture, an emission-offsetting effect from the dietary changes of the campus, and the utilization of otherwise unproductive space, but you also gain the chance to be a part of Washington College's community while enjoying a little sun and a lot of great friends.

Nichole Bryant '09
Require professors to make all submissions electronic. We would save thousands of pieces of paper a week!
OIT could give little seminars to help professors utilize this tool.
Professor Olsen required it in my class with him and it was very productive. Having criticism in the form of Word Comments is so much more useful and legible.

Emily Winchell '12
Going green is becoming more and more important to maintain our environment. I believe that the biggest problem is that people are not aware of the simple things that they can do to help. Something very minor that can be done is to make a list to put on the backs of all dorm room doors of the simple things that everyone can do. It can have things like turn off your lights, unplug things that you aren't using, take shorter showers, recycle everything possible, buy a water filter instead of drinking from water bottles, etc. These are things that everyone can do- they just need to be reminded! On a bigger scale I think it would be a great idea to have a drive at the end of the year that collects everything that people plan on throwing away when they move out for the summer (books, clothes, etc.) I think that we would be surprised at how many things people are going to throw out that can be donated to others who could use it. Along with this there should be a box in the CAC where people can put old electronics that are broken. Electronics contain mercury which is bad for the environment. This should be kept out of the trash and be taken away by hazardous waste companies. 1-800-GOT-JUNK (http://www.1800gotjunk.com/EasternShore/?cid=30116) takes away all old things and recycles as much of it as possible or finds a place where it can go without harming the environment. They pick up on the Eastern Shore which means that we could collect things that people would otherwise throw away and have pickups throughout the year or just at the end of the year. In my room alone I have a broken humidifier, broken DVD player, and a broken phone. These are things that have parts that can be recycled that I should not throw away and I'm sure many other people have many broken electronics. The price ranges from $250-$500 for the removal depending on the amount of junk. We could sell an item in the bookstore that is green and part of the proceeds can aid in the service. This could be a tote bag that is made of recyclable material or a nalgene water bottle or notebooks made of recyclable paper, etc. We could even design a t-shirt that is green and says Going Green for Good or some sort of slogan and the profit from these shirts can pay for the pickup. Of course this is a beginning of an idea that can use more work but I think that so many students have extra things that they just throw away before they go home for the summer and it is such a waste. It gets thrown in a dump and pollutes the world when it could be recycled or given to someone who could use it. I hope that you like my idea- thank you for your time.

Daniel Goodman '09
With so many farms around the college, why is it that we do not offer lessons in creating sustainable vegetable gardens? The idea would be to offer a course (or seminar) on creating vegetable gardens (not unlike the Victory Gardens of WWII) which students can participate in. In this course, students will learn how to create sustainable gardens such as the three sisters garden which grows string bean, corn, and squash which all compliment each other with various nutrients. Students will also learn of the environmental hazards that accompany modern farming such as run off, over eutrification, and harmful pesticides. I believe this is a very relevant idea for students because such hazardous farming techniques affect our own Chester river which in turn affects the entire ecology of the Chesapeake bay. Not only does this idea provide environmental hazard awareness but it is also a skill which can save a few dollars in food, not a bad skill to have in a recession economy.

Shane Brill '03, Web Editor
Faculty/staff compete for the greatest average reduction in daily home energy use each month, comparing bills annually. A $10 entry fee is required to compete each month. Whoever wins for the month (based on percentage of KwH reduced) takes half the pot, and the other half goes toward a new eco-improvement on campus. We can chart the progress of all participants on a website. This works on a few levels:

  1. cash prize is incentive to get people started
  2. participants embark on a lifestyle change with their families
  3. everyone saves $$$ at home
  4. community feels invested and understands value in eco-improvements

A scanned copy of the winner's energy bills might be showcased online as a record for that month. We could pitch participation like a drive, each month striving to get more individuals signed up. Each month's winner would have the opportunity to share best practices that helped reach the goal.
Conclusion: everyone wins in home energy savings and helping to make the campus more sustainable.

Keri Kiewra '09
As the joke goes, saving water by "showering with a friend," might be one way to cut down on our water consumption, but another is to simply shorten the length of each shower. Sure, a hot shower is pretty nice, and nobody here is suggesting we get rid of them all together, but how long does the average Washington College student spend in the shower each day? Fifteen minutes? And how many gallons of water does each shower use? A 15 minutes shower could easily use up 60 gallons of water.
Imagine, however, if you spent three minutes less in the shower each day, by the end of the semester, you'd have cut down your shower time by almost five hours (and probably have made it to class on time).
As for reducing time in the shower, we have a few options. Get rid of all that wasteful hot water, resulting in uber-quick, ice cold showers? Effective, but unpleasant. Setting your alarm fifteen minutes later each day, forcing yourself into a 30-second shower before you sprint out the door? Also tempting.
But how about installing waterproof timers in the showers that can be set to 5, 10, or 15 minutes, which would gently encourage students to get out of the shower? By being able to see the minutes ticking away, students can become more mindful of the time they actually take in the shower and learn to move a little more quickly in the mornings. Providing information in bathrooms about how many gallons of water are used in each minute a shower runs could also help encourage students by letting them see exactly how much water they could save by taking slightly shorter showers.
So either find a friend to shower with, or get out of the shower. You're not that dirty.

Lindsay Dutton '09
I don't know if this is really an ingenious idea but something that really irritates me is how many Elms are printed every week, and how many are just gathering mold in the Sears house. I think it would be a great idea if students subscribed to the Elm and had them placed in their campus mailboxes on Friday instead of being scattered around campus. They could still put copies of the Elm around campus but how about 50 instead of 200?

Beau Croll '09
One of the distinct features of Washington College is our location near the Chester River and Chesapeake Bay. As a result, it is in our best interest to preserve the habitat and ecology of these regions. One of the major pollutants for both is fertilizer run-off. The excess nitrogen and phosphorus from common fertilizers causes eutrophication, which can have devastating ecological impacts. As part of the George Goes Green campaign we should work to preserve our local waterways and deter pollution. The Bay is filled with complex ecosystems filled with a variety of fish and wildlife that are being exposed to pollution. Washington College can begin by ensuring that all food purchased and served was grown in organic fertilizers. In return, the institution can refrain from using harmful fertilizers and irrigation techniques that cause run-off. The two programs can be in conjunction as compost material from the dinning hall can be an organic fertilizer. While there is composting in effect now at the dining hall, the effort can be expanded to the Cove and Sassafras Outtakes. Given the amount of compost, the school would actually save money by not having to purchase other fertilizers. If other lawn care companies are doing work on campus as well, they must be required to follow the same rules (many companies offer organic options or we can offer our compost.) In an additional benefit, the school would also produce less trash with an increase in composting. The health of the Chesapeake Bay and the Chester River is below desired levels and Washington College should work to preserve these necessary habitats. With poor water quality, lower numbers of habitats, and lower fish populations it is important for George Goes Green to address these issues in our local community. The benefits of this project are that is would be sustainable, practical, and applicable. In entering the new dining facility more compost sites can be available as well as other places on campus. With the increase in student size, the compost material will provide fertilizer and save the school money. Also, in changing where we purchase food, the food being served well not have the same chemical content and will not have harmed the Chesapeake Bay. George Goes Green will see success in this project and promote a healthy local environment.

Max Rodriguez '10

Aundra Weissert '08, Admissions Counselor
"Seasons of Sustainability"
With the primary goal of developing a deeper, more enriched understanding of sustainability throughout the campus, I propose that we implement a year-long series of learning and development programs that change with each season.
Each season would have a different theme: energy, food production, insulation, and transportation. These are four areas that generate high interest, and there are always new depths to be discovered for those who are more seasoned. Within each theme, programming could develop to help engage the community. People cannot become excited about sustainability until they learn more about it!
Each season could even have a catchy title—"Spring into Food Production," or "Fall for Efficient Transportation," or "Insulate the Winter Blues," etc. The title of each season can also serve as the theme—spring could revolve around gardening, learning more about local foods, and fall could include learning more about alternative transportation and fuel, or how to keep your current vehicle running efficiently.
I see programming developing from these different themes—workshops for the hands-on crowd, lectures/book readings for the intellectual crowd, competitions between the campus community within each area, a film series, a book club, etc. Each different programming effort can work to appeal different groups of people— too much of the same type of programming runs the risk of drawing the same crowd, and not reaching out to new people.
I find learning more about sustainability and the environment very exciting. I think there are others on campus and within the community who feel that supporting the environment is a wonderful idea, but they do not necessarily feel attached to it. The idea behind themed seasons for sustainability, and also implementing several different types of programming within these seasons, is an effort to reach out to people who have not previously indicated an interest for either sustainability or the environment. Members of the campus and community may have the interest, but have not attended events (or may not be aware of events) that we've previously held on campus. Strong marketing and advertising campaigns of the different seasonal themes would really help target these community members, much like it has for the "George Goes Green" campaign.
Focusing the CES programming around different themes, exploring the themes in greater depth, and actively marketing each theme will help to create a different culture of environmental awareness on campus.

Anonymous
Due to the ongoing construction at WAC, I feel that this contest really pertains to how environmentally friendly our construction sites could be. An idea that is directly related to our school and its' agenda is to complete future construction jobs with recycled material. Using recycled material has become much more feasible than in the past. According to the site http://www.neo.ne.gov/home_const/factsheets/recycled_const_mat.htm, the use of recyclable construction materials greatly decreased the demand for raw materials and conserves a lot of energy and water because their less processing goes into the making of these materials. There is also less pollution when using these materials and less waste materials get discarded that would have previously clogged our landfills. Recycled construction materials may be used for site development, foundations, building envelope construction and interior finishing. There are many names of construction companies and suppliers that use recycled construction materials so it is fairly easy to access.
Along with the idea of recycling construction materials, I believe that recycling bins should be placed alongside all waste cans on campus. Unfortunately, many people are lazy and do not want to take the time to find a nearby recycling bin, which is why the campus should make them more accessible for everyone. We should also have a place to put food for composting in the dining hall, which may then be placed in WAC compost. This would be more convenient for the students and increase the amount of food composted.

Jake Deal '10
The issue of sustainability is of the utmost concern in the United States especially considering the state of our peak oil. It then goes without saying that we will be forced to find ways to implement sustainable business, industrial, and residential practices to reduce or make more efficient our energy consumption.
Our energy consumption has also been compounded with a weak economy that, for the past several months, has taught Americans a very important concept: we can no longer live the way we used to. Some researchers have nicknamed the downward spiraling of these two entities "The Great Disruption."
Our society is now faced with a very unique situation. We must reduce energy and spend less. The concept sounds rather intuitive but has proved to be quite difficult to implement. "Green" products have tended to be more costly to the consumer than non-green products, thus causing "going green" to be catalogued as a luxury. The price of hybrid vehicles has also traditionally been more expensive to the consumer than 100% combustion engine vehicles. We are beginning to see now the price of these zero emission vehicles dropping to accommodate the shrinking pocketbooks of the average consumer.
Washington College has been no exception to any of this; we are faced with rising tuition, hiring freezes, and increased energy bills. The George Goes Green campaign has been a valiant effort and has garnered national attention to the program. The main mission behind George Goes Green is to save energy by turning off lights and taking quicker showers. These small and oft-forgotten activities add up from person to person to have an enormous impact. They are also some of the keys to saving energy, but there could be much more done to promote sustainability on this campus.
Every student without exception to class year comes to Washington College with a horde of "necessities." Laptop, printer, speakers, television, DVD player, electric fan, and alarm clock are a few choice examples. Each of these items requires energy to operate. This campus in particular also allows each student the opportunity to bring a vehicle to campus, which a large majority take advantage of. Every student that lives off campus drives to class a mere tenth of a mile, except for a small minority that walks or rides scooters or bikes. I even find myself driving from one side of campus to the other for the sake of convenience and without much thought to what the emissions from my tailpipe could have on my environment. The fact is, we have too much stuff. It is not just the students that come equipped with an arsenal of electronics. The school has thousands of computers that often remain running twenty four hours a day, sometimes out of necessity but probably mostly out of neglect.
My suggestion for the George Gets Ingenious contest is the following set of suggestions:

  1. Alter the mission of George Goes Green to include an emphasis on the "reduce" piece of the mantra "Reduce, reuse, recycle." By reducing the amount of things students come to campus with and placing an emphasis on shared space, shared televisions, and shared work centers, we can cut down on electricity bills.
  2. Implement some sort of monitoring system that can cut power (and vampire power) to computers and other electronics that are not being used.
  3. There is a possibility that Washington College could begin to harness solar energy via solar panels that may be installed. If this is the case, this could be promoted to help students, faculty, and staff to reduce their energy consumption by explaining that the solar energy would help cut down on our consumption of non-renewable resources.

The implications of these suggestions could be immediate; we would see an immediate drop in our kilowatt-hour numbers on electricity bills, thus saving the college money and saving energy in general. If we could successfully have students come to college without as many electronics and other items, we could help reduce strain on the extraction and refinement of the raw materials. That would, in turn, reduce the energy spent on those raw materials.

Alyse Bensel '10
Within American culture today, the ever-increasing demand of freshwater has taken up millions of dollars within our economy. The extensive watering and grounds management on the Washington College campus has undoubtedly led to the use of many, many gallons of freshwater, especially as construction ends and new areas are landscaped, requiring further water use. As the Chestertown area receives around 45 inches of rainfall a year, implementing a rainwater barrel system could help defray the water costs of buildings and grounds throughout the year. Whenever there is rainfall on campus, the brick walkways quickly become flooded due to the large amounts of water coming through the many rainspouts on academic buildings and dorms. By simply hooking up these downspouts to food-grade 55 gallon barrels and covering them with wire mesh, the college could begin to collect its own rainwater, which is legal in the state of Maryland, while preventing much of this rainwater from flooding areas such as Martha Washington Square. While this may begin with only one barrel per rainspout, the college could also create a storage system beside buildings by connecting rain barrels, creating an easy access system for buildings and grounds when maintaining the campus. This rain barrel system requires minimal upkeep, the barrels are fairly inexpensive and last for a long period of time, and a simple modification of the downspouts will allow for quick installation. Eventually, these rain barrels can also be used for future vegetable and fruit gardens on campus, which will also aid in defraying the costs of maintaining them. Ultimately, the college will continue to save money over time as this system is developed and implemented on campus.

Dr. Deb L. Marciano, Associate Professor, Elementary Education
Separate plastic bottles from their caps. Save the caps to donate to local schools as math counters.

Kenneth Higgins '11
Washington college has one of the most beautiful campuses and the main reason is for its grass. And obviously grass has to be watered, but it would make more sense to water the grass in the early morning or late evening this way the sun would not have time to evaporate it and we could use less water. Also there have been times when we have been watering the grass while it was raining outside. This is something small that is easily done and could help us move towards sustainability.

Aliina Lahti '12
Trash dive for recyclables. If everyone and anyone who saw a recyclable (can, plastic, paper) in the trash picked it out, they would think twice about throwing a recyclable away... hence no more recycle in the trash!!

Caroline Miller, Resource Manager Natural Sciences
My idea is to take some of the waste vegetable oil produced in the dining hall and convert it into biodiesel. The process itself would require handling chemicals- such as methanol and a strong base such as 9M sodium hydroxide. I thought we could develop a class in environmental studies to let the students actually make the biodiesel, purify it and test it over the course of a semester. The end product could be mixed with the diesel we already purchase for use on campus by building and grounds and the athletic dept. Here is some basic background on how biodiesel is made: http://www.biodieselcommunity.org/howitsmade/

Jeannie B. Smith, Admissions
I've thought about these ideas off and on since the college purchased the land adjoining LaMotte.

  1. There are several dairy farms in the area who have heifer raising programs which sometimes have special diet needs. If the college leased out that piece of land for a small crop need, there would be a small income from it. Or, we could plant Canola on it, a bright, hearty flowering plant used in making vegetable oil, and food for cattle. It is a day-glow yellow when in bloom, which is beautiful, and then can be harvested at a profit by one of the local dairy farmers.
  2. Windmills - that pocket of land gets some sustaining winds, especially during the stormy months of the calendar year. Kits can be bought for less than $200 on the nternet, and can be self-assembled. The power generated could be used by the college or sold back to the electric company or co-op.

Anonymous
My First idea for this contest concerns the electricity consumption on campus. I think that implementing steps that will decrease electricity consumption on campus is crucial not only to students, staff and faculty but to the College in general.
Why? I think that being able to decrease the electricity consumption would significantly decrease the electricity bill of college. Beyond the environmental consequences, there is a practical part about wise electricity consumption.
I know that DALY bathrooms have sort of automatic light detectors that is for instance before entering the room, the lights are off but once in the lights are on and so on. I think that it is a good thing but it will probably take time and "money" until the majority of the campus facilities have such a system. I am not suggesting the generalization of such a system, it won't be original, I am just commenting on a good move from the part of the university.
I think that the WAC community should be offered incentives in order to be 'electricity savvy'. I think that the community should be offered incentives. When it comes to the students for instance I think that knowing that will pay a little less money each year in terms of their college expenses, the money they pay to college is pretty much attractive to them.

  1. If each student leaving a room, a hall, the bathroom turns off the light when he/she out. I am sure there will be an impact on WAC spending less on electricity. I was at the library the last week, at the basement, I noticed that a whole area of the basement was not used but the lights there were on and I usually turn off those if nobody is there.
  2. Buildings around campus with lights on at night, for instance the CAC, while nobody is there, the Atrium/Science building and most recently (Spring 2009) the new constructions even though not used and at the construction level. The same thing can be said of Atrium where from my own observation the majority of the building rooms/offices or labs are lighted but no one is there. I am not opposed to keeping lights in the halls for certain duration but not the whole night.
  3. After coming back from the Spring break, I could no longer open my window and instead I have now a fan in addition to the heating system I already have. I do not want to guess what my electricity bill is. I personally would rather open the window rather than use the fan! AIR is very important to human beings. The fan was in my opinion an ineffective step both in terms of it being cost inefficient but also because I can feel it cools the room but I would rather have opened the window of my room when I felt hot or in this case why the heating is on all the day along (I assume). I know the heating does not have to be on all the day and night it can be turned off and on at certain moments of the day.

The second idea I had is concerning the food leftovers in the dining hall and in general how food is valued over here IN COME CASES.
The leftovers in the dining hall that are still eat-able I think are already recycled for instance when it comes to vegetables turned into soups etc. I also know that there are some experiences going on in the environmental department to see if the oil used for frying etc. can be re-used ... recycled ... I can not remember exactly the type of experiences but I remember reading about it on the WAC website.
I think that some of the edible leftovers can be given for charity in a benovelant way (I KNOW THE UNIVERSITY IS COMMITTED TO COMMUNITY SERVICE),I am sure the surrounding areas to Chestertown house poverty and targeting a specific area to deliver to every once in a week/ month could be a honourable initiative.
My third concern is that The University's dining hall at least the temporary facility LOSES a lot of money in terms of dishware!! I think that students should not be allowed to take the "glass" dishware but only the plastic/ paper ones made available. There should be an implementation of not allowing students to take dishware at home. Or at least if they can, they should take it back.
Fourth, Best Practices
Launching Research with regards to the best practices in other universities/colleges all around the world and adopting the best practices of the successful green initiatives. We want GEORGES to go Green.
Fifth: Easy and not so Original
Turn off the tap when brushing your teeth, shaving, lathering, and washing.
Sixth: Single Stream Recycling at WAC
I think it would be recycling at Washington College a lot easier. At many times I wanted to used the recycling bins instead of the regular one but the way they are distributed and I understand their sort of scarcity compared to the regular ones. Let say I have a bottle of coke and the only recycling bin I see is one for aluminium. Two possibilities emerge I don't use it and instead I use a regular one. I use it the recycling the process of then emptying the recycling bins is made more complicated or I don't use it and you lose me as a one less person who uses the recycling bins. We get to recover more
Seventh: Improve the health of the plants by using natural fertilizers no chemicals or synthetic fertilizers.

Megan Jasion '09
Shoes for Ghana
Our very own WC SIFE team partnered with Perpetual Prosperity Pumps Foundation to improve the struggling economy of Ghana...but this is how:
We broadened the project to encompass the campus, community, and the world! The project itself is on-going and directly effects the WC community by giving each person the means to go "GREEN" by recycling their own used athletic shoes and cleats! Now not many places take used cleats! We help raise awareness of the importance of reusing and re-purposing items in your very own home or dorm room.
Next semester our goal is to attend athletic events in hopes to raise awareness among athletes, those who use their shoes/cleats the most!
A competition could be made amongst the teams and some kind of award could be given to the team members with the prize money! The prize money could go toward more publication of the effort as well as handouts and small giveaways to get the campus excited!
So far we have impacted 175 people! and we want to keep raising awareness!
A large number of students are involved in sports or go to the gym! and faculty work-out too! so a HUGE number of people could be impacted if the effort was taken on with full force!
This effort keeps shoes out of landfills, educates students about global issues and how WC can help...just one person.. with one pair of shoes... and how this affects and enriches the world.
We want to help George go Green by putting Chestertown on the Map Globally! and with the help of every student, staff, and faculty member we can hopefully keep this effort going and make a campus recognized effort!

Keith Webber '10
My idea to reduce the colleges green house gas emission is to replace all light with led light bulbs. These bulbs are up to 70% more efficient saving the college money and reducing the our impact on the world.

Samantha Bulkilvish '09
I believe we are so incredibly lucky to have a campus in this beautiful rural area of the state of Maryland but I think the other part of campus, the waterfront, is overlooked many times. Being on the Chester River is partly what drew me to this campus, but I think a lot of people forget the close proximity they have to the water once they get here so my idea for George Gets Ingenious is to bring some of our campuses focus back to the water.
During Scott Kellogg's lecture about Sustainable City Living he discussed a thing called floating trash islands. Although he focused on standing water like lakes and drainage ponds, I don't see why this would not work on the river. This project could be put together by community members, can teach school kids the importance of reducing, reusing, and recycling, since it is a "trash" island, and help demonstrate microhabitats and aid in classes like ecology, environmental studies, chemistry and the like.
The cost of this project would be little to none. The materials are empty capped plastic bottles, plastic mesh construction fence, aquatic plants, and a pole attached to some sort of anchor. The bottles could be collected by school children to teach the importance of reusing materials and the rest of the materials could be donated by the community or purchased for very little. The floating islands could be assembled by community members and college students over the course of a weekend like the artificial wetland workshop we had about a month ago. The benefits of having these "trash" islands are endless and will bring a focus back to the waterfront for students to have hands on learning experiences.
Other benefits of the floating trash island:

Educational Benefits:

Anonymous
I think all rooms on the Washington College campus should be outfitted with dimmer switches (to replace the standard light switches which only allow one to have lights" on" or "off"). Several years ago some faculty members unscrewed some of the light bulbs in the chandeliers in the Faculty Lounge so that when the lights are turned on, the room is not aglow with light but is more than adequately lit. Often when I enter a classroom the students say the overhead lighting is "too bright" but clearly turning the lights off on most days would not give students sufficient light to work under. Dimmer switches would allow us to cut down on our use of electricity and would also, perhaps, create better lighting atmospheres.
My idea would be to have groups of students and faculty "volunteer" to raise the modest sums of money necessary to buy the dimmer switches. For example the faculty could contribute funds or raise money for dimmer switches in the Faculty Lounge and their own offices. Students in dorms could raise money for dimmer switches in their own residence halls. Student Clubs could volunteer to raise money for dimmer switches to be installed in academic buildings. The senior staff could contribute money for the switches in Bunting Hall...and so forth. I think it is important to have everybody involved in the modest fundraising for the switches to sensitize everybody to their use.

Paige Martin '12
I was at the Chestertown Natural Food Store the other day and they gave me my groceries in a biodegradable plastic shopping bag. I know that not everyone is going to be able to buy and use reusable canvas shopping bags so if the Bookstore uses these biodegradable plastic shopping bags instead of the not-so biodegradable bags they use now it might make Washington College that much more green.

Kelli Canada '10
I would like to propose the harvesting of rainwater on campus. I think that this would be especially beneficial for the steam plant on campus that generates heat for a lot of the dorms. Instead of using the Chestertown community water to generate steam and thus heat for the dorms and buildings on the north side of campus, we could use rainwater. If a simple filtration system was put in place, rain water could also be used as a source of drinking water or water for the showers/toilets. We could also use the rain water for the green house on top of Toll. As much as it rains in Chestertown, we should definitely try to harvest it!

Erin Gray '11
Two words: motion sensors. Motion sensor technology has been a huge step up in technology in recent years, especially when it comes to energy consumption. I think adding motion sensor light and water technology to Washington College campus would improve upon limiting consumption of energy.
With lights, adding motion sensor technology would ensure that no light is left on by mistake. I have often engaged in silent battles with my floormates over turning the extra lights in the bathroom on and off. While this would not work very well with classrooms or dorm rooms, there are locations I think could benefit from the technology. Bathrooms, laundry rooms, stairwells, dorm kitchens, and common rooms come to mind. All are locations where there does not need to be a constant light source. Placing light sensors in these places would make sure that such less used rooms would not consume more electricity than they really need.
Even more important though is water motion sensors. Mainly, in dorm building sinks. I am as careful as I can be with my water consumption when I brush my teeth and wash my face. However, I cannot say how many times I have seen someone brush their teeth and leave the water running. I want to reach over and turn off the water myself. Motion sensors on sinks in bathrooms across campus would stop this from occurring again.

Rachel Field '11
I know that we have clamshells for taking food out of the dining hall in an eco-friendly manner, but I was wondering if we could take the idea a little further. I think that introducing a system in which a student can buy a sticker for one of their mugs or buy a mug that they could use around campus at the dining hall or at Outtakes or the CAC Coffee Bar would be a good way to stop wasting reusable cups. Along with the purchase of the cup I would imagine a reduced cost for drinks purchased while using that cup, maybe a 15% off price or something along those lines. This concept could of course be modified for the new student center.