Creating a Culture of Conservation

Temple University Office of Sustainability November 8, 2012 Shannon Abraham Jacki Boone Scott Thomas Hillary Wickham

Introduction
Task
Temple University is embarking on a campaign to reduce energy consumption by 25 percent per square foot over the next two years. In addition to the environmental benefits of greenhouse gas reduction, this measure will help keep tuition stable by reducing the universitys operating costs. Temples Office of Sustainability and the Office of Construction, Facilities, and Operations have been tasked with developing strategies to decrease energy usage on campus. Part of the overall plan includes an effort to increase consciousness about energy usage and encourage energy-saving behavior among students at Temple. The objective of the research team is to uncover relevant insights about students attitudes and lifestyles and to translate this information into communications recommendations that will help the Office of Sustainability achieve this goal.

Target Audience: Light Greens

Temple students have a lot on their minds friends, family, classes, work, and grades are inescapable; social issues and politics occupy many as well. While sustainability is a top concern for some, for many, the topic isnt quite so salient. Light Greens, as we call them, are students that care about issues of sustainability when asked, but rarely consider them on their own. They recycle and conserve resources when convenient or when it saves them money but dont always go out of their way to do so. These characteristics define a large percentage of the population at Temple, and this group of students is the target of our research. Though energy conservation is not a top-of-mind issue for them, they recognize its importance when prompted and have the potential to become more actively conscious of their energy usage. Our aim as researchers is to examine their motivations and help determine what message will most effectively persuade them to adopt these new behaviors.

Research Methodology
Data Collection
Our team conducted a series of eight qualitative interviews with students who fit the Light Greens target profile. We screened interviewees to select students who were moderately concerned about environmental issues, avoiding those who were heavily involved and those who said they did not care at all. We also focused on underclassmen and those living in the residence halls at Temple, since the former of these individuals have more time remaining on campus and the latter have more of an impact on total energy consumption.

Data Analysis
After conducting and transcribing interviews, our team used the annotation and copy-and-paste methods to analyze the data. We identified five common themes that appeared throughout the interviews: opinions about sustainability (coded green), concerns about money, personal habits, the effects of peer influence on behaviors, and students opinions about Temple University (coded Temple). With these themes in mind, we noted corresponding responses and pulled them together to create collections of related quotes for each category.

A collection of the most commonly-repeated words from our interview transcripts

Findings and Recommendations

Temples Sustainable Shortcomings
Temple students find that their peers, University faculty, and the University as a whole do not conserve energy. While many find themselves to be decreasing their individual carbon footprints by recycling, turning off lights, etc., their peers just dont care and are more concerned with partying on the weekends. On campus, few students seem to be making a visible effort to reduce energy usage in academic buildings. You dont see people going around turning off lights or turning off computers, says one respondent. Most people just keep that stuff on not even thinking about it. Another student noted, If you go into the TECH Center, probably 75 percent of the monitors are going to be turned on; I see people charging their phones during class. Overall, students have little faith in their peers attention to energy waste; as one comments, I think there are small groups of people on campus that are very interested in that topic but I think on the whole, most kids dont care. Not only do students find their peers oblivious to the campus energy expenditure, but they do not see much effort on the part of Temples administration either. Parts of some buildings that go unused for hours and the lights are on, notes one participant. According to the Light Greens, faculty also contributes to the lack of environmental concern around Temple. Faculty members often leave the classrooms without turning off lights, projectors, and computer monitors. Both students and faculty contribute to the overall opinion that Temple as a University does not conserve energy. Our target audience also had little awareness of the Office of Sustainability. One says, I mean I sorta knew there was an Office of Sustainability but I didnt really know what they I didnt really know what efforts they were doing. However, they are more conscious of tangible markers of sustainability such as recycling bins. Additionally, Temple students find flyers an ineffective source for conveying information. Students have said the flyers on campus are overwhelming and therefore become a blend of colors rather than a source of information. Many students cant recall being persuaded by a flyer on campus. One student said he has never gone to an event or done something because of a flyer unless he already knew about the information.

Recommendation
Any advertising for this campaign must be concrete rather than conceptual. Some of the communications should advertise Temples existing sustainability efforts, highlighting the universitys contribution to the new energy conservation campaign. Tell students what offices, 4

departments, and administrators are doing to make Temple more energy-efficient before asking them to join the movement. Students are not likely to be receptive to messages that ask them to change their behavior if they perceive that these messages are hypocritical. Include in communications the specific things that Temple University is doing to conserve energy; make a point that the students are not expected to shoulder the entire burden of behavioral change. Other communications should convey specific things students can do to contribute to the energy conservation effort. Utilize the space where flyers are not to encourage students to switch off. By placing signage on computer monitors, computer screens, computer mice, projectors, and on plugs in individual cubicles, students and faculty will be more likely to turn off or unplug the electronics they are using. The noticeable signage and its effects will translate into a more energy conscious University.

Students are Creatures of Habit

Energy-saving behaviors (or lack thereof) are habitual and usually unthinking. Its a common sense kind of thing, says one respondent. Students who grew up with budget- or energy-conscious parents have adopted conservation behaviors as habit. These individuals dont necessarily care more than others about sustainability, but direct personal reminders are a strong motivator. "I mean I care, says a student who lives with her family, but I wouldnt go too far out of my way to do it if my parents didnt yell at me that much. Sometimes fellow students can serve this same purpose, whether they take the form of energy-conscious peers or roommates sharing an electric bill. I split the electric bill so its unfair if I leave my things plugged in, [my roommates are] paying for it, explains a student who lives off-campus.

Recommendation
Create new habits through reminders and peer persuasion. Our target audience is most strongly influenced by personal reminders, so while signs and posters may be valuable for communicating specific facts and details, direct contact is likely to be more effective at creating a culture change. To this end, the Office of Sustainability should target opinion leaders, those members of social groups that are highly-regarded by their peers. These should not be limited to leaders of environmental groups, but should include sports teams, Greek organizations, various other student organizations, and even casual social groups, if possible.

Temples Invisible Energy Bill

While people relate energy saving to money saving at home, they dont make the same connection at school. As previously noted, parents often teach their children about the price that comes with wasting 5

energy, but that connection is lost when students arrive at college, especially when they cant see the electric bill. Most feel no responsibility for Temples energy usage and dont even consider the effects: I guess people really dont think about [turning lights off in academic buildings]. [...] I feel like people think that someone else will be using it afterwards, and they just leave it on for them. Among those who do understand the costs of their own energy consumption to the university, some feel entitled to this expense because of having paid tuition. Some people do not care, especially in dorms, because they think it is the right thing just because Temple is paying for it and they can afford it. Students may even go out of their way to use Temples energy instead of their own, as one participant noted, observing students charging their cell phones during class. Ultimately, though, as this respondent suggests, I dont really think theyve been given a reason to care.

Recommendation
In its communications to students, Temple University needs to explain the financial connection between its operating expenses and student tuition. Make students understand that their actions do have consequences, that their energy expenditures come with a price just as they would at home. More importantly, explain to them how energy-related reductions in Temples operating expenses could come back and impact them in the form of an extended tuition freeze. The message should both empower students and instill in them a sense of responsibility: inform them that they have the duty and the authority to turn off the lights in classrooms and take other actions. This supplements our earlier recommendation for Temple to publicize its own actions to conserve energy; in order to avoid alienating students with a message of responsibility, the university has to claim some of the obligation itself.

Money Matters - Concretely

Saving money is important to students in all aspects of their lives, but they need to see the results to justify their actions. Stressing about money was the worst, emphasizes one student. Temples relatively low (compared to other schools) tuition offers a solution to that problem for many undergraduates. A statement echoed by the majority of our respondents is that one of the top reasons people choose Temple is the affordable tuition. Financial concerns affect multiple facets of students lives, and they develop an equally varied set of strategies to save: I try not to spend money around campus on junk food or plan accordingly so I do not have to drive back and forth to Temple. Also, I look for cheaper books or rentals from the library. But unlike the vague notion of reducing Temples energy bill, these actions have immediate and obvious moneysaving consequences.

Recommendation
Not only must Temple emphasize that saving energy saves money (which prevents tuition increase), but the university must break down the savings into specific and tangible benefits. Instead of just reminding students to turn off the lights or computer monitors, utilize posters and other media to put these actions into perspective. Give them facts about the amount of money that would be saved if every student turned off the lights when they left the room and other valuable statistics.

Conclusion
Light Greens care enough about sustainability to ideologically support an energy conservation campaign at Temple. However, the message that will bridge the gap between these thoughts and their actions has less to do with sustainability as an inherently valuable principle and more to do with the cost-saving benefits of energy conservation. To persuade them to go out of their way to save energy on campus, publicize the steps they can take to reduce energy and present them with facts about the specific financial benefits of these actions. Advertise the ways Temple and its administration are also working to support the effort. Inform them that their energy usage on campus does have a measurable effect and that they have the ability to control it. These messages are well-suited for traditional stationary media, but the Office should look to peer opinion leaders to spread new ideas and enforce behaviors.

Appendix Interview Guide SCREENER 1. What year are you? (freshman, sophomore, junior) 2. On a scale of from 1-5, how concerned are you about environmental issues? (3-4) 3. Do you belong to any sustainable groups on or off campus? (no) 4. Do you live in the dorms or off campus? INTRO My name is ____________________ and I want to thank you for taking the time to meet with me today. The interview should not take more than thirty minutes. Im going to ask you some questions and I want you to answer them honestly; there are no right or wrong answers. I will be recording the session for our records only. All responses will be kept confidential, meaning that your interview responses will only be shared with my team members. We will not use your name in our report. Do you have any questions? Are you willing to participate in this interview?

_____________________________________ _____________________________________ _______ _____ (participant signature) (interviewer signature) (date) LIFESTYLE Tell me a little bit about yourself. Major why are you interested in this topic? Activities/hobbies what do you like about them/how did you get involved? Tell me about a typical day during the school week Where do you do most of your work (at home, on campus)? Why? CLIENT/BRAND What was most important to you when applying to college? Why did you decide to come to Temple? What do you think of Temple now? Give me the first thing that comes to mind. Imagine that Temple University is a person. Describe that person to me. GENERAL CONCERNS Could you list what you think are the top 5 issues that Temple students are worried about? o Which of these issues are top concerns for you? o Have you ever gotten involved in any of these issues? If so, how? If not, why not? What do you think would have to happen for you to want to get involved? Some other students I interviewed [also] said that they were worried about tuition costs. How do you feel about tuition at Temple? If you were in charge of Temple, what would you do about tuition and costs? What are some things you do personally to save money? 8

BEHAVIORS Do you do anything in particular to help prevent environmental problems? Would you explain that further? What steps do you take to conserve energy? What reminds you to conserve energy? o Do you find it rewarding or is it something you feel you need to do? How do you think other people on campus feel about conserving energy? What would it take for others to become more committed to conserving? Do you think Temple tries to conserve energy? How? COMMUNICATIONS Do you ever see signs or flyers around campus? What do they say/what are they for? Do you think they work? Have you ever done something because of information on a flyer? (gone to an event, looked something up or thought about it more, etc) If you could hang up other reminders around campus, what would they say?