Irish Fans—Wear Green and Be Green!

The Nov. 22 football game against Syracuse will make Notre Dame history as the first carbon-neutral game played in the House that Rockne Built. All of the carbon emissions produced by stadium energy use, as well as fan travel, hotel stays, and visiting team travel, will be offset by energy conservation projects coordinated by the University’s Office of Sustainability. Many of the offsets stem from student-led conservation efforts, including the compact fluorescent lamp (CFL) Upgrade, the Dorm Energy Competition, the Reusable Grab 'n Go Bag Raffle, and Game Day Recycling.

“Many people don't realize how much energy is saved by recycling,” says Erin Hafner, programs coordinator in the Office of Sustainability. “But the 65 tons of recycling we have collected over the course of the football season actually translate into 144 metric tons of reduced carbon emissions.”

Making the game carbon neutral is only one of the green initiatives surrounding the Syracuse game, which coincides with NBC’s annual Green Week. NBC is hosting an eco-competition between Syracuse and Notre Dame—the school that has the most football team members making commitments to lead greener lives wins $10,000, which will be used to enhance sustainability efforts on the winning campus. NBC also is hosting a video contest on the topic of sustainability, with the winning video to be broadcast on the NBC website and perhaps on national TV.

In the week leading up to the Syracuse game, the Office of Sustainability, GreeND, which is a student environmental group, and the sustainability commissioners will again be teaming up to bring improved efficiency to the residence halls on campus. An additional 3,000 compact fluorescent light bulbs will be distributed to those students who did not receive any in the CFL Upgrade in September. In addition, students will be able to get an energy audit of their dorm room that will address everything from the power settings on their computer to the reliability of their thermostat.

Whether you can make it to the Syracuse game or not, go to http://green.nd.edu to join the Fighting Irish team. If you will be at the game, wear a green hat, scarf, or jacket to show your green spirit. And be sure to stop by the Office of Sustainability tailgate in Joyce Lot at Lamppost 9. You can’t miss it— just look for the tailgate with a wind turbine.

For more information, visit http://green.nd.edu.