Capping off a week of events promoting clean energy, the student group emPOWER hosted a climate change fair on Friday from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m. in Sayles Hall.
The week's activities were part of Focus the Nation, a "national institutional teach-in" at more than 1,600 schools this week, event organizer Danielle Dahan '11 said.
One table at the fair allowed people to exchange their incandescent light bulbs for more energy-efficient compact fluorescent light bulbs at no cost. Dean of the College Katherine Bergeron's office provided the 84 new light bulbs to trade for attendees' old light bulbs.
The fair's organizers said changing from 60-watt light bulbs to 13-watt bulbs would save $25 in electricity costs over each bulb's nine-year life and reduce carbon emissions by several hundred pounds.
Elsewhere in Sayles, the Energy and Environmental Advisory Committee educated attendees about the University's goal to reduce its emissions from existing buildings by 42 percent by 2020.
"People seem really excited about it," said Michael Glassman '09, a member of the advisory committee and president of the Undergraduate Council of Students.
Across the room, members of the Brown Sustainable Food Initiative stressed the economic and environmental impact of buying local food. By reducing shipping and storage fees, purchasing local food cuts down on the use of gasoline and electricity.
Drew Raines '09.5 staffed a table for Climate Counts, an organization that created a rating system for corporations' advances in environmental concerns. The group scores companies on a scale of 0 to 100 based on 22 criteria.
"It's a pretty advanced rating system," Raines said. Companies received points based on their support for climate legislation, setting future environmental goals and other corporate stances.
Among the top-rated companies on the list are Canon, Nike and Unilever. Five companies, including Burger King, CBS and Amazon.com, scored zeroes.
Thayer Street eateries Au Bon Pain and Kabob and Curry provided free snacks. Food was also donated by Focus the Nation's national sponsors, Clif Bar & Co. and Stonyfield Farm.
A table in the front of the room provided postcards urging Rhode Island Governor Donald Carcieri '65 to pledge to reduce the state's greenhouse gas emissions by 80 percent of their 1990 levels by 2050. Dahan said emPOWER collected 90 postcards at Friday's event and several hundred overall during the week.
Heavy rainfall may have contributed to the event's low turnout. The event's energy emissions were offset by a $50 contribution to the New England Wind Fund, which invests in local wind power.
