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Assembly LXVII
Yale in a Green World:
Meeting the Challenge of Sustainability
November 15-17, 2007
Executive Summary Cover Letter
ASSOCIATION OF YALE ALUMNI
TO: Assembly Attendees
FROM: Stephen Scher ’56, ’66 PhD, Chair, Assembly LXVII
DATE: February 2008
RE: Follow-up on Assembly LXVII
Yale in a Green World: Meeting the Challenge of Sustainability
I hope you enjoyed attending this fall’s Assembly, Yale in a Green World: Meeting the
Challenge of Sustainability, as much as I enjoyed Chairing it. I am delighted to provide
you with the Executive Summary of the Assembly proceedings, which I encourage you to use
as you report to your constituencies. You should also feel free to share it with those in
the Yale community who you think would be interested in hearing about the many ways in which
Yale is playing a leadership role in the area of sustainability.
I thought you also might be interested in some information on how you could practice a more
sustainable lifestyle at home, and so I asked those in Yale’s Office of Sustainability to come
up with a short list to get us started. Like Yale, we also can play a leadership role in living
sustainable lives!
Energy
Conduct a Home Energy Audit:
http://www.eere.energy.gov/consumer/your_home/energy_audits/index.cfm/mytopic=11160
Things you can do to reduce your energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions:
- Install a Programmable Thermostat
You can save as much as 10% a year on your heating bills by turning your
thermostat down 10 - 15% for 8 hours each day. You can do this automatically without
sacrificing comfort by installing a programmable thermostat.
- Lower Settings on Water Heater
Most water heaters are factory pre-set at 140 degrees. This may be more than you need,
especially in a one or two person household. If your hot water supply is adequate, try
lowering the thermostat to 120 degrees. Experiment within the 120-140 range to find the
lowest setting which supplies you with enough hot water. Every degree you reduce will
save energy costs and reduce pollution.
- Replace Incandescent Light Bulbs with Compact Fluorescent Lights (CFLs).
CFLs are four times more efficient and last up to 10 times longer than incandescents.
A 22 watt CFL has about the same light output as a 100 watt incandescent. CFLs use 50 - 80%
less energy than incandescents.
- Choose Renewable Energy
Many consumers can now choose their energy supplier. If you have a choice, choose an electric
utility that uses renewable power resources, such as solar, wind, low impact hydroelectric, or
geothermal. Residents of California, Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Texas can get help choosing
clean power from the Power Scorecard, developed by NRDC and other groups. Connecticut customers
of United Illuminating and Connecticut Light & Power can choose to have either 50% or 100% of
their electricity come from renewable sources through Sterling Planet or Community Energy.
Waste
Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle (in that order)
- Reduce Material Consumption
Seek out products that minimize packaging. Bring reusable bags to the store for grocery
purchases. Give gifts of services and experiences for birthdays and holidays.
- Reuse
Avoid disposable or single-use items. Use a cloth dishrag instead of paper towels at home,
and reusable food containers instead of aluminum foil and plastic wrap
- Recycle
Most municipalities offer curbside pickup of recycling including glass, aluminum, and paper.
Check to see what your city or town collects or where you might bring these items. Recycling
saves energy, landfill space and natural resources. Home recycling requires a trivial amount
of time, yet offers substantial benefit to the homeowner as well as the environment. According
to the EPA, the national recycling rate is just 30%. Increasing materials recycling in the US to
60% could save the equivalent of 315 million barrels of oil per year.
Water
Conserve Water
- Use water wisely in everyday activities
Water is wasted more quickly than you might think. An open faucet lets about 5 gallons
of water flow every 2 minutes. In the kitchen, you can save between 10 and 20 gallons of
water a day by running the dishwasher only when it's full. You can save even more by washing
dishes by hand in a sink or dishpan containing water, rather than running the tap continuously
as you scrub. Run the clothes washer only when full as well. Taking a shorter shower (turn off
the showerhead while soaping) will also save a lot of water. Sweep sidewalks and driveways
instead of hosing them down -- washing a sidewalk or driveway with a hose uses about 50 gallons
of water every 5 minutes.
- Install a low-flow showerhead
Showers account for 32 percent of home water use. The law now requires that all showerheads
sold be low-flow models. Low-flow showerheads deliver no more than 2.5 gallons per minute
compared to standard showerheads that release 4.5 gallons per minute. A family of four using
low-flow showerheads can save about 20,000 gallons of water per year
Resources:
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