The StFX Energy Challenge
March 11, 2026 4:02 PM
In these dark and cold winter days, it is easy to forget about the benefits of conserving energy. Everything is kept plugged in and turned up so high it feels as though summer has come early.
Olwyn Foley, the internal environmental officer, and president elect of the students’ union is trying to work with all of the residences here at StFX to improve their environmental outputs. She is currently attempting to spread awareness to the student body about conserving energy through the StFX Residence Energy Challenge that is will run from March 1 to March 24.
“The challenge is part of the sustainability week that is going on later this month, so it is important for me because it is the green aspect of sustainability,” Foley says. “It’s really important because it raises awareness of our own consumption. It shows the community and the university that we are very interested in this,” she continues.
Prizes for the challenge are up to $500 for first place, $300 for second and $200 for third. In comparing a house the size of Burke to one the size of MacIsaac, Foley explains how fairness is achieved when calculating percentages.
“We compare it to a month where there is similar consumption from a previous year and calculate it by the decrease from current month, a year later” explains Foley.
Increasing energy consumption is a big problem not just here at StFX, but all across Canada. In 2002, Statistics Canada determined that Canada has used almost the same amount of energy as the United States, yet the population of Canada is considerably smaller than the US population.
“I’m all for it” says Adriana Viale, a first year science student, about conserving energy. “I turn off the lights when I don’t need them, I always make sure I have everything unplugged and I try not to use my heater. Saving power is not just important because it helps the environment, but it also saves money”.
The awareness week is intended to educate students at StFX so that in the future, we can continue to implement these good habits and continue to conserve energy as we move on into society.
It is hard for students, especially living in residence, to conserve energy. We tend to spend a lot of time in our rooms with music on, the heat turned up and televisions, laptops, microwaves and various other appliances always running. Some of these are essentials to student life, however, some can without a doubt be used less.
Start being more conscious about what you use in your room. Everyone should start to become aware of his or her environmental footprint.
Society in general is becoming more environmentally-aware, a huge positive step, which means we, as the next generation must set the standard for how we want our world to be shaped in the future.
