From Capital News 9, Albany, NY
30 September 2008
Original link (may be expired)

College Lesson on Going Green [accompanied by photo of new North Academic Building]
By Ryan Burgess

WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. -- A group of students at Williams College are on their way to class on Monday. This year, there's a new lesson they're learning, but the subject matter is on life outside the classroom.

"We look at our campus as a living laboratory for sustainability," said Zilkha Center for Environmental Initiatives director Stephanie Boyd.

Williams, like a lot of colleges and universities across the country, is reducing energy use and carbon emissions in student life. Here, two green buildings were just constructed with daylight harvesting technology. That means electricity is used only when it's too dark outside to keep it lit up. It's part of a campus plan to reduce greenhouse emissions by ten percent below the levels in 1990.

"We're teaching our students how to live, even if they don't become actively involved in environmentalism in their careers. I think it's important for our students to come away from campus with a real sense of responsibility for their world," said Boyd.

Finding new ways to go green is nothing new at this college. Each year they have a competition called Do it in the Dark. It's a way to promote competition among dorms to see which can have the lowest carbon footprint.

"Different groups of students have competitions to try to use the least amount of energy they can. So they put timers in the showers to time the showers to make sure you don't use a lot of hot water," said Williams student Brad Polsky.

"Every house is measured in terms of electricity use before the competition and after the competition. People are encouraged to turn out the lights," said Williams student Elen Song.

It's the type of lesson usually taught inside buildings covered in green. But now it's a subject learned outside the classroom on how to go green.