Green Cup kicked off Oct. 21, marking a change in schedule from early February in previous years, to late Fall Quarter.
The annual event challenges residence halls and Greek houses on campus to reduce energy and water consumption. Students for Ecological & Environmental Development has run the competition since 2006.
“We wanted to move it to the fall with the idea of engaging the student body at the beginning of the school year,” said SEED member Danny Ginzberg, who represented the organization at this year’s NU Food Day. “Hopefully that force could sustain itself throughout the school year.”
The Weinberg senior said the shift was also made in hopes of making outdoor SEED events possible during Green Cup.
Ginzberg acknowledges the move might make conservation more difficult. In October and November, days get shorter and colder, the opposite of February, when daylight increases. As Green Cup continues, students may begin to turn on lights earlier in the day, resulting in greater energy consumption throughout the competition.
“It’s definitely a challenge that we foresaw,” Ginzburg said. He said he believes that a plateau of energy and water consumption would be considered a successful outcome during a time of the year when both are generally increasing.
SEED combated potential confusion from the event’s change in date by spreading the word via the group’s Facebook page, as well as by painting the Rock and creating flyers.
The main goal of SEED and Green Cup is to emphasize the fact that environmentally friendly habits can be incorporated into the average student’s life with ease, Ginzberg said.
For Green Cup, SEED provided every campus residence’s ecology representative with water-saving shower heads and more efficient light bulbs to help conserve energy. Ginzburg said he hopes this shows participants that they can be more sustainable without having to change their entire lifestyle.
Despite potential challenges, Ginzberg said SEED is prepared to work through them.
“First ask yourself what you’re motivated by and then find a way to do it,” he said.
Green Cup ends on Nov. 17.