AUP, You Can Make a Difference with Renewable Energy!
When it comes to climate change, it’s sadly become pretty easy to lose the plot. We’ve been seeing the same things on the media for years. Recycle. Don’t litter. And of course, everywhere you go there seems to be a company tooting it’s own horn about their “new sustainable action plan,” or how much they’ve reduced their carbon footprint in the last 5 years. But really-- but what does make a difference? More specifically, what can you or I, or the average person do to make a difference in a world of over 7.5 billion and growing? Although there are many collective things that can be done to battle climate change on the front line, one of the most paramount things that can actually be done collectively to create a global impact right now is the conversion to renewable energy: energy that can be collected and naturally replenished from renewable sources such as wind, rain, tides, geothermal heat, and windmills.
Image credit: Flickr/Lilly, Viktor, Ludvig, Kim & Giette Andersen
According to buycleanenergy, a site dedicated toward educating the public on why clean energy is important, "electricity generation is the leading cause of industrial air pollution in the U.S. Most of our electricity comes from coal, nuclear, and other non-renewable power plants. Producing energy from these resources takes a severe toll on our environment, polluting our air, land, and water." With the transition to renewable, clean energy, electricity can still be produced—just with fewer to almost no environmental consequences. Using clean, renewable energies is undoubtedly one of the most important actions that one can take to work collectively toward a move sustainable future. ISES, International Student Energy Summit, is a “global forum that focuses on sustainable resources management and the role that students will play in defining the future of energy development.” ISES targets primarily undergraduate and graduate students who are interested in energy, and looking to made a global impact in the energy sector, and is the most important, energy related event in which ANY student from around the world can take part. "SES has been hosted with great success in Calgary, Canada in 2009, in Vancouver, Canada in 2011, in Trondheim, Norway in 2013, and in Bali, Indonesia in 2015." The next conference is projected to take place in 2019—only two years from now. Although they’re still working on a bid for the city, the conference will likely be held in London—a quick trip from Paris.
Image credit: Flickr/Ian D. Keating
Millennials essentially hold the weight and the responsibility of our global future in their hands, and are the ones that will play the most crucial role in transitioning the world to a more sustainable energy future. Student Energy encourages this engagement with energy, whether it be in business, industry, or within their own home or university communities.
"The Millennial generation will largely be responsible for tackling the world's energy challenges. The time is now, the movement is growing. Will you join us?"
Video credits: Youtube/Student Energy Summit
I spoke with fellow AUP student and ISES Volunteer to hear about her experience with ISES and what AUP kids can do to get involved.
Fernanda Sapina, ISES Volunteer. Image Credit: Signi Livingstone-Peters
How did you hear about ISES? What attracted you to the program?
"My best friend is a geophysicist, and I heard about the program about 4 or 5 years ago when I volunteered for the LASES summit, which is essentially the Latin American version of the student energy summit. I loved the project and everything that they were doing so much that I decided to continue doing this because I feel that this is something that’s really important and that us, the future generations, can contribute to saving our earth."
What exactly do you do for ISES?
"I started off as a volunteer, but for the coming summit conference I’ve been able to step up my role and I’m currently helping organize the next conference, which will probably take place in London."
How can one become a volunteer?
"It’s very easy to be become a volunteer. All you that you have to do is contact the organizers or sign up online by visiting the ISES website. After joining student energy as a volunteer, you will begin to receive the Student Energy newsletter. What I suggest, though, if you want to become even more deeply involved, there is a more important role that you can become—a delegate. Being a delegate is much more important than being a volunteer, because you become an agent of change."
What are the roles of a volunteer and a delegate?
"Your role as a delegate is to absorb as much information as you can and make sure that you apply it and use it to affect positive change in the world. You will basically mingle with others at events and conferences to network with people that are also involved in energy."
What are the steps to applying?
"Click on the international student summit link, check which conferences are going to happen this year, and go to the conferences web page and there is a section that is open to applications. This is a different process to becoming a volunteer—if you apply and get in, you are playing essentially a bigger role in the conference, and you are involved in the conversation and ideas about energy."
Image Credit:www.studentenergy.org
ISES is student oriented, and "has been developed to provide delegates with knowledge on real energy issues, networking opportunities that can help in career development, and student-oriented social events." It's interactive and international, an incredible opportunity for students from all corners of the globe to mingle and discuss their ideas and goals regarding energy and the future of our environment.
Call to action! See the link below to apply, subscribe, become a volunteer, or donate money to the future of renewable energy.
https://www.studentenergy.org/international-student-energy-summit-2017
