Auroria – CU Denver

2010's been an amazing year. Thank you for being part of CoPIRG's Energy Service Corps - here's a quick look at some of the work we accomplished together.

COPIRG Accomplishment 2010 Energy Service Corps

Community Outreach- We launched COPIRG’s Energy Service Corps at the Auraria campus this semester by doing an energy assessment on the Denver Inner City Parish. City Councilman Doug Linkhart came and not only pledged to reduce his carbon footprint and helped complete a free energy assessment and weatherization on the building. At the campus Sustainability Fair we hosted an information table to teach participants how to reduce their energy use. We also organized a dorm blackout party - 25 students turned off all their lights and attended a workshop on how to save energy in the dorms.

Energy Assessments- We collected 500 pledges from students and Denver residents to reduce their energy consumption and completed 40 free energy assessments in Denver. Through the assessments we educated the community on how to reduce their energy use through simple measures in their homes. We also teamed up with the facilities manager of Auraria to start the Green Office program to do energy audits of every academic department and building on campus. The goal is to gather enough data to help update the old heating and cooling systems all over campus.

K-12 Education- To conserve our resources and cut costs, it is essential we instill in the next generation a greater understanding of the importance of energy efficiency. This semester we went into 10 different schools and educated 400 students about energy efficiency and the environment. We also teamed up with after-school programs to set up weekly lessons so that students can develop a deeper understanding and appreciation for how our everyday behaviors can affect the world around us.

CoPIRG launched Energy Service Corps on October 23^rd with four simultaneous events across the state.  At the events 32 students from CSU, UNC, CU Colorado Springs, and the Auraria campus were joined by local leaders to help upgrade the energy efficiency of community buildings, distribute energy efficient light bulbs, and inform the community about the new program.

The event in Denver was a huge success. Students from the Auraria campus performed an energy assessment and basic weatherization of the Denver Inner City Parish, which is a non-denominational, nonprofit organization that works to improve the quality of life for low-income residents of the Denver Metro Area.  The students were joined by Denver City Councilman Doug Linkhart, who helped them apply weather-stripping to high traffic doors and install energy efficient light bulbs. 

Auraria campus students with City Councilman Doug Linkhart and employees of the Denver Inner City Paris.

Evan Gathers and Jim Laven inspecting the Parish's hot water heater.