Rivers to Participate in Enviro-Friendly Green Cup Challenge

1/21/2010

Over the next month, Rivers will be participating in a special student-driven energy challenge with schools from all over North America. The Green Cup Challenge, taking place January 25 to February 22, is a friendly competition meant to encourage schools to reduce their electricity use.

 

“This is our chance to get the entire community together and active,” said Max Birger ’10, a leader of the school’s Environmental Action Club. “Rivers can make a huge difference in lowering our electricity use and making ‘green living’ the norm.”

 

Founded in 2006, the Green Cup Challenge has grown from three initial schools to more than 150 across the continent. This is the first year Rivers has participated, and students and faculty alike are enthusiastic to take part.

 

“I am really excited that Rivers is taking steps forward to be greener,” said EAC member Alex Drew ’10. “It’s a great opportunity for us to not only reduce energy consumption but also educate the student body and faculty on what they can do to help the environment.”

In early February EAC students will be presenting on the topic at Upper School and Middle School Division Meetings, offering concrete suggestions for reducing energy usage.

 

The idea of getting involved in the challenge originated with Rivers’ Footprint Focus Group, a committee of faculty members who have been meeting regularly this year to discuss sustainability on campus. “There are a lot of great ideas and well-meaning people at Rivers, but it’s also important to have the structural support, which is one of the goals of [the Footprint group]”, says science teacher and Footprint coordinator Emily Stevens.

 

The event is just one of many green initiatives on campus this year. Over winter break, Rivers installed new lights in the MacDowell Athletic Center and the Haffenreffer Building that use approximately 90 percent less wattage. In addition, the school’s 130 tons of annual recycling represents 64 percent of its material, which is nearly twice as much as the independent school average of 34 percent.

 

Even with all of this progress, there is always room for improvement. The Green Cup Challenge is striving for schools to reach an aggregated electrical energy reduction of at least seven percent, and Rivers is hoping to lead the charge (pun intended). “The goal is to help create a cultural change in our environmental consciousness, habits, and choices,” Stevens says.