Thoughts on Our Group Project

First off, I think this group project idea for Redfern is a great idea! This is a perfect example of the types of problems that we (the class) could come across in a couple years when we enter the workforce. As I listened to our speaker describe the program and what our goals were, I had several thoughts. The one thought that really stood out in my mind, which I will discuss with my group during our first meeting, was the idea of how to make the buildings around campus "green." There are many buildings around our campus which were built more recent than others. These more recent buildings are more "green" than most of the other buildings around campus.

The one things that stands out to me is the lack of energy efficient light bulbs that are being used around campus. I lived in Geer Hall (one of the shoeboxes) last year, and there was not a single energy efficient bulb in the whole building. Each room had six light bulbs in it, one in each closet (2), two bulbs for the main light in the center of the room, and two bulbs over the sink. Replacing existing incandescent light bulbs with energy efficient bulbs is an easy way to make our campus "greener." I do understand that fact that incandescent bulbs are much cheaper than compact florescent bulbs, but looks at the pros that go along with using compact florescent bulbs. Compact fluorescent bulbs last much longer than regular bulbs, do not produce as much heat, and use less wattage which leads to lower power usage. In addition to the simple costs, think about how costly it is to send maintenance staff out to the dorms each time a bulb burns out. The maintenance department could save money by putting in compact fluorescent bulbs which would reduce the amount of trips maintenance staff spent back and forth to dorms. Yes, maintenance staff would still have to replace bulbs as they burn out, but it would be much less frequent trips.

Another thought that stands out to me is replacing old windows such as those in Lowry and the surrounding older buildings. I had several classes in those type buildings my Freshman year and it appears they still have single pane windows in them. These windows are extremely old and out of date. Double pane windows would make much more sense to the University because it would conserve on the costs of heating and cooling the buildings.

There are many little things like this around campus that could easily be changed to produce a "greener" campus. I understand that the University is facing financial shortfalls in the current economic state, but as a group, we could hopefully produce a viable strategy to raise money for these upgrades and additions. With working with my fellow classmates, I feel that we can create a viable strategy that could be implemented on campus to make our buildings "greener." If this plan was successful here on the Clemson campus, there is no reason why we could not build a universal plan that could apply to colleges across the country.