Undergraduate Research: An Archive - 2021 Program
Kiera Robinson ’21 MOLECULAR BIOLOGY Certificate in Environmental Studies POLICY, NORMS AND BEHAVIOR THESIS TITLE The Development of Smart Energy Meters for College Dorms that Provide Real-Time Feedback on Energy Use and the Associated Carbon Footprint ADVISER Stephen Pacala, Frederick D. Petrie Professor in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Efforts toward carbon neutrality have emphasized the importance of raising people’s awareness of their personal carbon footprints in order to invoke increased self-management of their behaviors. One method has been through the use of carbon-footprint calculators, which help users estimate their total carbon emissions and determine past actions that are carbon intensive, while simultaneously motivating them to adopt low-carbon behaviors. However, many existing calculators apply no environmental behavioral theory and only provide retrospective calculations, which limits the influence they can have on their users. My project explored the development of affordable and compact smart energy-use meters that could be deployed in college dorms to measure student energy use and the associated carbon footprint. This project also encompassed a small pilot study that explored the translation of this proof-ofconcept technology to assess student energy use, changes in attitudes towards energy use and energy literacy, and determine the likelihood of positive spillover into other pro-environmental actions from assessing one contributory carbonintensive action. 45
Willemijn ten Cate ’21 ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTIONARY BIOLOGY Senior Thesis Research Funding Awardee THESIS TITLE How Human Traffic — on Foot or in Vehicles — Affects Wildlife Movements on Landscapes Shared by Humans Throughout the COVID-19 Pandemic ADVISER Daniel Rubenstein, Class of 1877 Professor of Zoology, Professor of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Policies restricting peoples’ movements during the COVID-19 pandemic created an “Anthropause” whereby people altered their regular behavior. I observed and analyzed how prevalent the effects of the “Anthropause” were throughout high human-density suburban parks and neighborhoods during a three-month period in Connecticut and New Jersey. I used camera traps to analyze variations in human activity and how wildlife populations responded to these changes. My study noted large amounts of human activity during the lockdown phase, suggesting that people valued their personal freedom over government mandates. As the lockdown restrictions eased, the majority of parks saw gradual reductions in the abundance of people. These variations in human activities did not directly affect the behaviors of suburban wildlife, as the animal populations either stayed constant or followed the same declining patterns as people. Overall, wildlife seemed to be more influenced by seasonality effects (with warmer temperatures reducing their prevalence) than the presence of humans. Specifically, an increase in nocturnal wildlife activity later in the study illustrated animals’ shift in behavior to effectively maximize their energy usage. My study further demonstrated that wildlife alongside residential areas were not affected by the “Anthropause.” POLICY, NORMS AND BEHAVIOR 46
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- Page 9 and 10: Favour Oribhabor ’21 CIVIL AND EN
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Kiera Robinson ’21<br />
MOLECULAR BIOLOGY<br />
Certificate in Environmental Studies<br />
POLICY, NORMS<br />
AND BEHAVIOR<br />
THESIS TITLE<br />
The Development of<br />
Smart Energy Meters<br />
for College Dorms that<br />
Provide Real-Time<br />
Feedback on Energy<br />
Use and the Associated<br />
Carbon Footprint<br />
ADVISER<br />
Stephen Pacala,<br />
Frederick D. Petrie<br />
Professor in Ecology<br />
and Evolutionary<br />
Biology<br />
Efforts toward carbon neutrality have<br />
emphasized the importance of raising people’s<br />
awareness of their personal carbon footprints in<br />
order to invoke increased self-management of<br />
their behaviors. One method has been through<br />
the use of carbon-footprint calculators, which<br />
help users estimate their total carbon emissions<br />
and determine past actions that are carbon<br />
intensive, while simultaneously motivating them<br />
to adopt low-carbon behaviors. However, many<br />
existing calculators apply no environmental<br />
behavioral theory and only provide retrospective<br />
calculations, which limits the influence they<br />
can have on their users. My project explored<br />
the development of affordable and compact<br />
smart energy-use meters that could be deployed<br />
in college dorms to measure student energy<br />
use and the associated carbon footprint. This<br />
project also encompassed a small pilot study<br />
that explored the translation of this proof-ofconcept<br />
technology to assess student energy use,<br />
changes in attitudes towards energy use and<br />
energy literacy, and determine the likelihood of<br />
positive spillover into other pro-environmental<br />
actions from assessing one contributory carbonintensive<br />
action.<br />
45
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