Q: Why is it necessary to raise awareness about the environment through Earth Week?

A: I’m not sure if it’s necessary to raise awareness. The front-page articles in newspapers do a good job doing that. It’s more about trying to get people to change their behaviors, which is a lot different and more difficult than just being aware.

Q: What success did you see during Earth week last week?

A: The success of last week was that people gave some thought to their actions and behaviors and what they could change to make a difference. People tried different ways of commuting, different methods to use paper — I think all of those are successes.

Q: Why do we need to conserve energy? Have we always needed to conserve energy or has the necessity just emerged?

A: Energy conservation is not new. There is a limited amount of fossil fuel available to us and the excessive use of those fossil fuels is concerning because of the pollution and depletion of those resources.

Q: What are some of the recent scientific advancements for saving energy?

A: I think there are new scientific advancements every day, and I think the implementation of the scientific advancements is very slow.

Q: Are there certain appliances students should look into purchasing that use less energy?

A: Yes, some appliances use different amounts of energy and energy consumption is dependent on their construction. Large televisions use more energy than small televisions and flat screen computers use less energy than the standard monitors.

Q: What would you say are the top three things students can do to reduce their energy usage?

A: Students are in control of lights and things that are plugged in. Turning off lights and computers and unplugging rechargers are two things you can do to save energy. Students should also keep windows closed when the buildings are being conditioned, heated or cooled.

Q: Does Penn State hold any kind of activities or campaigns on campus to promote energy conservation?

A: Yes. There is the Take Charge campaign that was originally developed to create awareness. We’ve moved more toward inspiring people to take action. The most recent example is the My 20 campaign.

— Compiled by Erin Shields