Switching off? Challenges in engaging students in energy efficiency. Findings from an EU wide energy saving project

The success of projects encouraging pro-environmental behaviour change amongst students in university accommodation has been well documented but typically focuses on small-scale interventions – whether geographically or temporally. This paper presents findings from an EU funded international competition, which discusses insights on a scale previously unseen. SAVES is an inter-dormitory energy-saving competition that is being run in five countries and has reached over 50,000 students over the last two years specifically, over 480 dormitories at 17 Universities. Building on the successful UK ‘Student Switch Off’ (SSO) competition run by the National Union of Students, SAVES provides engagement with students, enabling, empowering and motivating them to save energy – focusing specifically on the last stage of the ‘Awareness, Interest, Desire, Action’ framework. Smart meter data is used to run real-time energy challenges through an energy dashboard that informs students how much energy they are using, and encourage peer-to-peer learning and international cooperation through a virtual twinning scheme. This paper presents findings on the effectiveness of Student Switch Off competition, as it has been implemented in Europe. A mixed methods approach (pre- and post- intervention surveys, focus groups and analysis of energy meter data) was taken to evaluate the level of energy savings and quantifiable behaviour change delivered in students across participating dormitories and countries. Reflections and recommendations are offered towards the role of student-led competitions and energy dashboards as a method for communicating data to students.