Results Tallied for 2010 NRG Games

The fifth annual NRG Games, a competition between residence halls to reduce energy consumption, came to a close on Monday. The residence halls with the highest percentage of energy reduction were Edmond's, which won the Lower Campus contest, Duchesne, which won the Upper / Newton Campus contest, and Ignacio, which won the Ignacio - Rubenstein head-to-head match-up.

Over the entirety of the competition, the equivalent of 133,793 kilowatt-hours in energy was saved.

The NRG Games, organized by the Boston College Facilities Management in collaboration with the Undergraduate Government of BC (UGBC) and ResLife, tracked the energy usage of all Upper, Lower, and Newton Campus residence halls from Feb. 1 to March 15.

"A week before the competition, we set a baseline – a snapshot of what is being used – and then we judge the residence halls on what they've reduced over that time period," said Deirdre Manning, director of sustainability and energy management. This year's comparison period was from Jan. 24 to Jan. 31. "We know what was used the week before the competition started, and then the percent reduced is read over that baseline."
Manning said there are three separate competitions to encourage a friendly rivalry between residence halls. "It makes more sense for people who feel part of a community to compete against each other."

Rubenstein Hall and Ignacio Hall compete in a separate division because they have electric heating and some of their success is due to warmer weather, Manning said. "It is not really fair to have them compete against other residence halls." Ignacio beat Rubenstein last year with a 4.72 percent reduction and continued the trend this year with a 15.6 percent reduction.
"Although Ignacio reduced energy consumption the most [out of all 19 residence halls], electric heating is expensive," she said. "The students can control the heat themselves, though, by turning it up or down."

Facilities Management coordinated with the EcoReps program this year by asking representatives to rally their dorm mates behind the competition. "The EcoReps are there to serve as peer educators, and to let people know the competition is going on," Manning said. "In the Lower contest, Edmond's won, and 90 came in second, and both Edmond's and 90 have particularly engaged EcoReps."

This year was the first time all students, including those on Upper and Newton, could view their real-time energy consumption on the online Dashboard. Last year, only the Lower Campus halls were on Dashboard.

"Dashboard is a great tool for students to understand the behavioral aspects of energy conservation," Manning said. "60 percent of energy, students have no control over because it's necessary for things like heating, but we're looking for students to take control of that 40 percent that is up to them, and make the best decisions for themselves and for the environment." The Dashboard can be accessed at bc.edu/dormenergy.
The Dashboard includes several features that equate the energy use of each residence hall to relatable units, such as how many hours of blow-drying and how many driven miles could be powered by the energy being used by the residence hall at any given moment. In addition, a real-time feature shows how much electricity is being used at any given time, and this can be broken down into percentage per person.

Since launching the NRG Games, Manning said the school has made great strides. "In general, there is more awareness," she said. "Students realize the impact human beings have on the environment. However, sometimes awareness doesn't translate into action. Our hope is to engage a competitive spirit and have that translate into action."
Dashboard also offers students a way to monitor the dollar amounts of energy that are consumed in residence halls. This feature could provide students with an idea of how much they would be paying in bills if they lived outside the University. "Students can form good habits, and learning now will serve them well when they have to pay themselves," Manning said.

Even though the competition is over, Manning advises students to continue to use the Dashboard and make an effort to become educated on the issues.
"Really, everyone's a winner," Manning said. "The University has less to pay in electricity bills, and students could decrease their tuitions, as 3 percent of student tuitions go toward this cost."