How to promote Green energy as a student?

​Maybe it's our nature to resist change even if it for good cause. And this change becomes difficult as we grow old. The concept of green energy is in practice for decades but it was in a lull phase for a long ​ time, maybe because people were less willing to change. ​Recently it has shown some spark and why not add more fuel to make it a fire. The students are one of the effective mediums who can bring change in the society and the nation as a whole.
It is true that students are always short of funds, therefore, I will discuss those points which they can implement with ease, requiring less or even no funds.

1) Use of solar gadgets

The college students are often busy and need to access the internet very often to get information about their assignments & projects. It becomes a challenge to keep their smartphones, iPod charged every time. A solar charger is a great option which absorbs the sunlight and produces electricity to charge their electronic gadgets. They can charge their electronic gadgets anywhere in between the classes.

2) Shifting to energy efficient lighting

​Do the following experiment by yourself:
1.    Take one incandescent bulb, one CFL and one LED of the same rating
2.    Light them simultaneously for 5 minutes
3.    Observe the brightness in each of them
4.    Then take them out carefully using a cotton cloth
5.    Touch carefully and feel the heat on each of them
Observations:

• You will observe that the LED is the brightest followed by CFL and the incandescent bulb
• The incandescent bulb the hottest followed by CFL and LED.
• This experiment shows that LED is the most effective amongst the three as it can convert most of the electric energy into light energy while the incandescent bulb only converts 20% of the electric energy into the light energy, the remaining 80% gets wasted as heat.

Find the old electrical appliances which consume more energy and ask your parents to replace with more energy efficient ones. Similarly, do the same activity in your school or college and inform your teacher about the same. 
Read: How are Electric energy and Power measured?

3) Recover: Plant trees

​The students are always short of funds but planting a tree doesn’t cost you much. Simply, visit a nursery, choose and buy your favorite one and plant it at an appropriate place near your home. Keep watering the sapling in the mornings and the evenings till it’s stem changes to brown in color in few months. This tree will absorb the CO₂ expelled by you and will provide you the fresh air to inhale for the lifetime. You can also request your school or the college authorities to start this activity on the campus.

4) ​Reduce: Switching OFF lights and fans when not in use

​Make this a duty to switch off all the appliances of your class after the school or the college. Don’t wait for anyone to do this activity. Also, keep a cross check on the other classrooms or any other room and inform about the same to the concerned person if you find lights and fans running without any reason. 

5) ​Use recycled products in your daily routine

​Say no to the plastics and use jute bags to carry your tiffin or the lunch box. Buy notebooks made up of recycled paper and don’t leave and torn any page without reason.

​6) Request your school or the college to use renewable energy

Tell your teachers that you want solar energy in the campus by highlighting its benefits both financial and the environmental. The cost of the solar has declined drastically in the last 2 decades, making it a feasible option. Moreover, the maintenance cost of solar is very minimum and has a life of over 25 years. ​

Conclusion

​The green energy lifestyle has become the hour of the need. To accelerate the promotion of green energy we should motivate students to adopt this change in their daily lives. The young generation with their innovation ideas, learning abilities and want for the greener planet can bring change in the society, nation and in the planet, making it a better place to live and breathe.