In winter 2005, Robin Fenske and Mark Retzlaff completed an independent learning contract, “Energy Awareness in On-Campus Housing,” sponsored by Dr. E.J. Zita of The Evergreen State College. The purpose of the project was to demonstrate a feasible application of sustainability concepts at The Evergreen State College on-campus housing, with the assumption that this institution is representative of a modern American institution.
The initial hypothesis was that leverage points could be identified through a demonstration of the human, financial, and ecological benefits of alternative energy-use behavior. This strategy required viable feedback loops connecting energy use with the effects of its use. Data analysis revealed that these feedback loops were weak or non-existent. Lacking the feedback structures to recognize the benefits of alternative energy systems, it became clear that institutional change could not be motivated by quantitative results of efficacy.
Rather than working to establish the missing feedback loops, we chose to utilize the loops that did exist. The initial hypothesis was disproved and another was adopted: the current motivations of the agents of the system, in addition to an understanding of alternative behaviors, will identify useful leverage points.
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