Centennial Campus will no longer be the only source of technological innovation N.C. State has to offer.
Aaron Burkhart, winner of the Think Outside the Brick Competition and a junior in environmental technology, drafted plans that would bring solar chargers to main campus. Once complete University approval is reached, the sustainability competition will award Burkhart $1,000 to put his plan into action.
Burkhart won the competition with the help of Students for Solar, a club in which Burkhart serves as head of planning operations. Together, they proposed putting solar chargers in the outside area of the Atrium.
“Other universities are doing a lot in renewable energy, and it’s time for N.C. State to take it up a notch,” Burkhart said. “I want the Wolfpack to be number one.”
Burkhart said he had been working on his winning proposal since September and is still awaiting approval from University Dining this week in order to make sure the cables are lined up properly.
The plan involves attaching a solar panel to one of the light poles outside the Atrium. Wires attached to the solar panel will lead to outlets on three tables where students can then charge electronic devices, such as laptops.
Once approved, Burkhart hopes to have the equipment ready by March 1, after which he will begin to “put the pieces together.”
Burkhart said he was inspired by old ideas like the solar pavilion in the Honors Village, but wanted to expand the idea to enable more students to be affected and take notice of renewable energy methods in their lives.
“I wanted to try to get us in the eye of the student body,” Burkhart said.
“It was one of our most unique and progressive ideas,” Abby Gingrich, a junior in environmental technology and co-head of the competition, said. “It’s something that will advertise sustainability and it will make it something that everyone is faced with on a day-to-day basis.”
According to Gingrich, most proposals utilize locations like Centennial Campus or the Honors Village that are far from the center of much of the student activity. Gingrich added the project should be complete by graduation.
The competition struggled last year and was unable to declare a winner due to only receiving three proposals, none of which met competitive criteria. This year, nine applicants entered but the committee selected one runner-up instead of two, as originally promised, as no other proposals matched the criteria of the competition, Gingrich said.
The extra $500 that would have gone to the 2nd runner-up will fund future advertisements and the creation of plaques on projects that have already been developed.
Burkhart said he only anticipates construction taking one weekend, so any disruption would be minimal.
“We really hope the student body enjoys it, and, if successful, we hope we can get donations from students to continue to expand the project to every table,” Burkhart said.
Burkhart said the application process was not easy and included creating both the budget and design.
“We get all kinds of ideas and that’s what I love about [the competition],” Gingrich said, adding that the application is meant to be unspecific and open for interpretation, allowing students to be more creative with their ideas.
Burkhart said he already selected the items for the project and secured a partnership with Southern Energy Management, an acclaimed solar energy firm based in Morrisville, but is continuing to work out the details with the help of Students for Solar.
A former winner of the Think Outside the Brick Competition started the club, which received an undergraduate research grant and conducted a solar feasibility study of the University, Burkhart said.
Burkhart will next compete in the ACC Green Energy Challenge, a regional competition sponsored by the Department of Energy that awards a $100,000 grant for an environmental business.
