2012 conventions 2012 election 2013 session arts arts and culture author ballot measures basketball bomb books boy scouts budget bullying business charlie hales children clackamas climate change coal college courts crime culture culture club democrats drugs economy education environment family film fluoride food gay rights guns handguns health health care health insurance high school history housing immigration internet kitzhaber law legislature lgbt literary arts living marijuana marriage media medicine mental health military minor parties mohamed mohamud movies music native americans news newspaper obama olympics oregon our town parenting pers photography police politcs politics port portland portland business journal president prevention public safety religion republicans rnc romney rural salem sam adams sandy hook schools science shooting sports suicide supreme court taxes technology television terrorism theater third parties transportation union university of oregon washington wildfire women

With generous support from SolarWorld, PGE, the Bonneville Environmental Foundation and the Energy Trust of Oregon, the German American School of Portland received a brand new 7.8 kW solar panel array this school year.  One third of the panels have been installed to function as awnings over some windows and are visible from the school’s playground.  The school also received an interactive, touch screen kiosk that provides real-time data on energy production and various types of renewable energy resources.  Every morning, the teachers, parents and children at the German American School check in at the kiosk to see how much energy we saved and produced.  This information is also available at www.gspdx.com as part of the Solar 4R Schools project. 

 

While the total energy bill of this large building is only minimally reduced by this 7.8 kW system, we have chosen to very publicly support solar energy for the future.  For our children, solar energy is simply a fact of life and something everyone should do.  They see it working on the playground, learn to cook with solar ovens in the classroom and it has become a normal part of their daily routine.  By the time they are ready to assume leadership roles, I am hopeful that production costs will have dropped and that more renewable resources are used to alleviate the unbearably heavy burden that fossil fuels currently put upon our world.  

 

Blake Peters, German American School of Portland

posted 3 years, 11 months ago
view in context