Students, Employees Battle in Sustainable ‘Smackdown’
Annual competition concludes later this month
With weeks left until the March 31 conclusion of the Green Devil Smackdown, one team is pulling away from the pack.
The "EA Executive Ballers," a team comprised of undergraduates who are part of the Environmental Alliance student group, is ahead of the Green Monkeys, last year's Smackdown champion from the Biology and Evolutionary Anthropology departments.
"The competition is important to us because it truly embodies our initiatives and goals, and presents typical sustainability challenges in an engaging, interactive way," said Kelly Shen, team leader of the EA Executive Ballers. "Enthusiasm among the team is infectious, and we're constantly reminding and encouraging each other to participate in the challenges."
With 1,959 average points per participant, EA Executive Ballers is 300 points per person ahead of the Green Monkeys.
Throughout the competition, participants accrue points for their sustainable actions and teams are ranked by average points per participant. Just under 900 Duke community members on 44 teams are competing in this year's Smackdown, which has had students and employees take steps to reduce their energy consumption on campus, try alternative commuting and host a "Meatless Monday" potluck. Participants also earn points and prizes for taking sustainability-themed quizzes.
This week's challenge asks teams to build a work of art from recycled materials and for individuals to donate items to the Duke Free Store during its next event March 17 inside the Bryan Center.
"Each week, our goal is to show students, faculty and staff how easy it can be to live more 'green,' " said Casey Roe, outreach coordinator for Sustainable Duke. "Reaching campus carbon neutrality by 2024 means everyone has a hand in reducing Duke’s emissions."
Find out more about the Green Devil Smackdown at the Sustainable Duke website, as well as competition leaderboards.