Bright Ideas for Saving Energy

Community Contributed

By Maya Lima and Gaby Miguel, Kilohana sixth graders

Did you know that you can save a lot of energy and money by simply flicking off a light?   On Feb. 18, Kilohana School held an Energy Expo for their school community.   At the expo, Kilohana’s fifth and sixth graders gave presentations on how to save energy and money at home.  Parents and students walked from station to station to learn about energy conservation.

One of the student presenters, Gabrielle Miguel told audience members, “One cool way to save energy is to wash your clothes with cold water and buy Energy Star appliances.”  According to Miguel, washing clothes in cold water can save a family more than $63 a year.

At another station called Energy Efficient Homes, Reese Tollefsen shared more amazing ways to save energy.

“You can put radiant barriers in your attic. A radiant barrier is like a mirror to heat,” Tollefsen said. Tollefsen went on to point out how radiant barriers can lower the temperature in a home by 9 degrees.

All participants in the evening’s activities were entered into a drawing for awesome energy efficient prizes like LED light bulbs, a hand cranked radio, solar cell phone chargers, and even a solar camp shower.  The evening was a great success partly due to the generous support of two sponsors, Hawaii Energy and the National Energy Education Development Project.

At the end of the evening, Maya Lima, a sixth grader, summed up her classmates’ efforts.

“Everybody that showed up for Kilohana’s Energy Expo was a winner because they learned a lot of interesting ways to save energy to help keep our planet green and clean,” she said.