Awards 2011 - Communicating
A worldwide university-level competition challenges student teams to design and build homes that are energy self-sufficient.
Under the blazing sun, over a period of 10 days last summer, 17 houses suddenly appeared on the banks of the Manzanares River in Madrid. These were no ordinary homes. They were functioning demonstration models conceived and built by university students from around the globe. The teams were participating in Solar Decathlon Europe 2010, a competition that challenges teams to construct self-sufficient homes equipped with technologies that permit maximum energy efficiency.
“This means that the homes must use nothing but solar energy to make everything work. Everything from the hot water heater to the home cinema system must rely on solar energy,” said Ismael Martínez, Director of Communications for Solar Decathlon Europe.
The homes take almost two years in the making. Multi-disciplinary teams comprise a range of students, from architects, to energy experts, to building engineers, to designers, to communications specialists. “Some teams involve 150 students. Others rely on just 20-30 students,” Martínez said.
All teams must have the support of their university, both for research purposes and financial backing. The teams typically pursue further sponsorship from private companies and public institutions that contribute not only with financial resources, but with technical assistance and cooperation.
Why Solar “Decathlon”? To name a winner, the competition evaluates the homes on a series of 10 criteria. Points are awarded on architecture, engineering and construction, comfort conditions and house functioning. Innovation is also a factor. Teams also must demonstrate that the home has “industrialisation” potential: is it viable in their home market? Communication and social awareness is another measure evaluated by the jury. And to be sure, criteria also include sustainability, energy efficiency and electrical energy balance.
The jury consists of internationally renowned experts in each field. They visit and evaluate the houses for each of the subjective contests. The jury then assigns the scoring and names three winners for each discipline. Teams accumulate points during the competition, together with points coming from home measurements and monitoring contests, until the final winner is announced.
One of the positive outcomes of the competition are the partnerships that develop between the university student teams and the private sector. Projects like Solar Decathlon Europe encourage the industry to develop new products and improve existing ones.
Martínez was impressed with the range of materials used in the 2010 exhibition. “A student team from China built their home with bamboo,” he said. “Clearly they used a material that is easy to source, easy to market and culturally appealing – not to mention renewable.”
A team from Florida designed an open-plan home, reflecting the architecture approach common in their region of the United States.
“These are not dream homes,” Martínez said. “They must be buildable, marketable and realistic. Plans must include their approach for industrialisation. That is how we can demonstrate to the building industry and to the public what the future needs to look like.”
Over the course of the event in Madrid in 2010, near 200,000 visitors came to the “Villa Solar” exhibition. Plans are underway for the 2012 edition of Solar Decathlon Europe, which will again take place in Madrid. Organisers have already accepted 20 teams who are well underway with their planning.
The original Solar Decathlon competition was organised for American universities by the US Department of Energy. For the first time in 2010, Solar Decathlon Europe took place thanks to a Memorandum of Understanding signed between the governments of the US and Spain. The Technical University of Madrid (UPM) was instrumental in bringing the competition to Europe.
Contact:
Sergio Vega Sánchez
Project Manager, Solar Decathlon Europe 2010 and 2012
Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, Escuela Técnica Superior de Arquitectura
Avda. Juan de Herrera 4
28040 Madrid
Spain
E-mail:
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
Tel: +34 91 336 65 84
Web: http://www.sdeurope.org
Partners:
Ministry of Infrastructures Development - Secretary of Housing (former Ministry of Housing)
Madrid, Spain
www.mviv.es
Universidad Politécnica de Madrid
Madrid, Spain
www.upm.es
Department of Energy
Washington D.C., United States of America
www.energy.gov
European Union
Brussels, Belgium
www.europa.eu
Madrid City Council
Madrid, Spain
www.madrid.es
Additional information:
Link 1: http://vimeo.com/19429177
Description: SDE2010 5’ video presentation (English). Using the right toolbar you can access to the Deutsch, French, Spanish, Portuguese and Greek versions
Link 2: http://en.sdeurope.org/wp-content/uploads/downloads/2011/02/Educational-Program.ppsx
Description: Outreach and Education Program Power Point slideshow
Awareness-raising campaign informs social network users about climate change and encourages them to switch to green electricity
Taking full advantage of today’s Internet landscape, the “Klimaschützer” (climate protectors) campaign is building grassroots climate awareness across Germany while encouraging a switch to electricity from renewable sources. The goal is no less than a one-million-tonne CO2 saving by 2020.
On the main website, browsers can find information about how much green electricity costs and how to switch to a green electricity provider in their region. They can also download a so-called carbon clock that shows the campaign’s progress to date in terms of tonnes of CO2 saved and they can become Facebook, Twitter or MySpace fans with the chance of winning gifts donated by sponsors such as cosmetics manufacturer Lush each time an interim campaign goal is reached.
Interim goals are set in terms of tonnes of avoided CO2 and numbers of fans on social networking sites. By the end of 2010, the campaign aims to have saved 202,800 tonnes of CO2, equivalent to the annual emissions of a small town, and to count 10,000 Facebook fans.
Contact:
Lisa Backmann
Marketing "Die Klimaschützer"
Heidjann GmbH & CoKG
Nottebohmstrasse 6
48145 Münster
Germany
E-mail:
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
Tel: +492511332690
Web:http://www.stromauskunft.de/de/html/oekostrom/klimaschuetzer.html
Additional information:
Link 1: http://www.facebook.com/klimaschuetzer
Description: Facebook Fan Page “Die Klimaschützer”
Link 2: http://www.stromauskunft.de/de/html/service/klimaschutz.html
Description: Participation Project February
Link 3: http://twitter.com/klimaschuetzer
Description: Twitter Newsfeed
First of its kind website in Spain applies power of the Internet, and social media in particular, to encourage individuals and organisations to cut back on energy use
Our future world is likely to be more interconnected than ever before and at the same time increasingly bound by environmental constraints. It is these two trends that have inspired a new website called VERDEate.com. The first of its kind in Spain, the portal offers individuals and organisations “Green Challenges” they can undertake to reduce their CO2 footprint.
The Challenges are “fun and entertaining” actions to change daily habits. The website calculates the CO2 savings of each action and awards and recognises users who make the biggest reductions. In this way it builds awareness of energy savings, makes them tangible and creates a new community businesses can also tap into. Social media are an integral part of the drive to reach new participants.
In two years, VERDEate.com aims to cut 570 tonnes of CO2 through its Challenges, of which it plans to develop 24 with 200 companies taking part. It aims for 4,000 registered users, 5,000 monthly visits, and appearances in 50 media channels.
Contact:
Sebastián Bustamante
Director
VERDEate.com
Jardins de la Penya Regalessia 1
01873 Barcelona
Spain
E-mail:
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
Tel: +34622849446
Web: http://www.verdeate.com
Ireland’s national energy authority invites post-primary school students to design an awareness campaign on energy efficiency and climate change based on “One Good Idea”
Often that’s all it takes. Post-primary school students in Ireland are invited to research, design and implement an awareness-raising campaign on energy efficiency and climate change based on “One Good Idea”. The competition, organised by Ireland’s national energy authority, aims to empower young people to inform their communities about energy and climate issues.
Students work in team of two to six and choose one of three target audiences for their campaigns: adults and the wider community, their peers, or primary school children. They are encouraged to use a wide variety of media including drama, art, music, writing, and digital media.
In 2010, 156 teams from 67 schools took part in the competition. The campaigns of the 800 students involved targeted an estimated 28,000 people. 215 schools have already registered for 2011. After registration, the schools get a workshop on sustainable energy run by an expert. With the help of feedback, 20 finalists selected in April will present their campaigns to a jury on 13 May after which Ireland’s energy minister will present the winners with awards.
Contact:
Aoife Cannon
Education Programme Executive
The Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland
Wilton Park House
Wilton Place
2 Dublin
Ireland
E-mail:
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
Tel: +353 1 808 2049
Web: www.seai.ie/onegoodidea
Project partner:
The Change Campaign administered by the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government (DoE,H&LG)
Dublin , Ireland
www.change.ie
Additional information:
Link 1: http://vimeo.com/13094548
Description: Video of national award ceremony 2010
Link 2: http://www.seai.ie/Schools/Secondary_Schools/One_Good_Idea_Project/Image_Gallery/
Description: Photos of national award ceremony 2010
Link 3:
http://www.seai.ie/Schools/Secondary_Schools/One_Good_Idea_Project/Topic_Fact_Sheets/
Description: Topic fact sheets for 2010-2011 project
German Solar Industry Association organises an annual “Week of the Sun” to promote solar power, and provides a strong public information support network to the industry all year round
“The Week of the Sun is looking for the most exciting projects and solar stories in Germany, and calls on all solar enthusiasts to apply to become Solar Ambassadors!” This is the German Solar Industry Association’s (BSW) annual invitation to people all over Germany to pick up the baton for solar power.
Since 2006, the group has organised a week in May during which all are invited to instigate and participate in activities nationwide that create awareness and interest in solar power. Activities can be anything, from a solar-themed cycle ride to site visits of solar plants. The initiative is supported by representatives from industry, municipalities, schools, architects, environmental research institutes, NGOs and citizens. Since its start, the campaign has reached more than 1.2 million people, steadily growing from year to year. In 2010, it hosted over 3,000 events that attracted more than 300,000 visitors.
Throughout the year, the BSW also provides the solar industry with professional marketing, event and public information support. This includes the design of specific communication materials (printed and online), and two magazines and poster exhibitions devoted to solar heating and solar electricity, respectively.
Contact:
Christina Schodry
Head of the Project
BSW - Bundesverband Solarwirtschaft e.V. (German Solar Industry Association)
c/o Woche der Sonne
Stralauer Platz 34
10243 Berlin
Germany
E-mail:
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
Tel: +49 30 29 777 99 - 20
Web: http://www.woche-der-sonne.de
Project partners:
Deutsche Umwelthilfe (DUH) e.V.
Radolfzell, Germany
www.duh.de
Zentralverband der Deutschen Elektro- und
Informationstechnischen Handwerke ZVEH
Frankfurt a.M, Germany
www.zveh.de
Zentralverband Sanitär Heizung Klima (SHK)
Sankt Augustin, Germany
www.wasserwaermeluft.de
Zentralverband des Deutschen Dachdeckerhandwerks e.V
Köln, Germany
www.dachdecker.de
Additional information:
http://www.woche-der-sonne.de
