Solar Decathlon 2017 Has Begun !
Dear Friends & Neighbors,

Solar Decathlon 2017 Official Open by U.S. Energy Department and Denver officials cutting the ribbon . (photo by Jack Dempsey, presented at WindermereSun.com).

Solar Decathlon 2017-Volunteers (Credit: Garrett Bourcier of U.S. Department of Energy Solar Decathlon, presented at WindermereSun.com)

Denver Mayor Michael Hancock and Deputy Secretary of Energy Dan Brouillette experience the moss wall on the U.S. Department of Energy Solar Decathlon 2017, (Credit-Jack Dempsey of U.S. Dept of Energy Solar Decathlon, presented at WindermereSun.com)

In the upcoming series of posts, Windermere Sun will be covering Solar Decathlon 2017, from Oct. 5-15, 2017, in Denver, CO (this time). On Thurs., Oct. 5, 2017, U.S. Deputy Secretary of Energy Dan Brouillette kicked off the highly anticipated Solar Decathlon 2017 event in Denver, CO. This international competition demonstrates to consumers how to save money and energy with affordable energy products available today. Hundreds of collegiate students from the United States and Europe have assembled at the 61st and Peña Station in Denver to showcase their highly energy-efficient, innovation-packed solar houses for competition. “The Solar Decathlon inspires and challenges college students to think creatively about energy innovation for the future through design,” said Deputy Secretary Brouillette. “Students are actively addressing global energy challenges such as reliability, resiliency, and security by incorporating the use of innovative energy and water efficiency technologies into their professional projects.”
Thousands are expected to visit the houses, which will be open to the public free of charge for eight days over two weekends: Thursday, October 5 – Sunday, October 8 and Thursday, October 12 – Sunday, October 15 from 11:00 am to 7:00 pm MDT. It will also be open on Monday, October 9, from 1:00 pm to 7:00 pm MDT. Visitors are able to tour the houses, gather ideas to use in their own homes, and learn how energy-saving features can help them save money today. The overall winner will be announced on Saturday, October 14, at 9:30 am MDT. This Solar Decathlon is the eighth U.S. competition since 2002.
This year’s collegiate teams were chosen nearly two years ago through a competitive process. The selected teams and their projects represent a diverse range of design approaches, building technologies, and geographic locations, climates, and regions – including urban, suburban and rural settings. They also aim to reach a broad range of target housing markets including empty nesters, disaster relief, low income, multigenerational and single family, and Native American communities. Teams have gathered their combined interdisciplinary talents to design and build the houses, raise funds, furnish and decorate the houses, and optimize the houses’ performance. The winner of the competition is the team that best blends design excellence and smart energy production with innovation, market potential, and energy and water efficiency.
Solar Decathlon 2017 is made possible by a public-private partnership between DOE’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy and Energetics Incorporated. For full event information, visit www.SolarDecathlon.gov.
Solar Decathlon 2017 Teams competing in Denver, CO, are listed below:
- Las Vegas: University of Nevada, Las Vegas (Las Vegas, Nevada)
- Maryland: University of Maryland (College Park, Maryland)
- Missouri S & T: Missouri University of Science and Technology (Rolla, Missouri)
- Netherlands: HU University of Applied Science Utrecht (Utrecht, Netherlands)
- Northwestern: Northwester University (Evanston, Illinois)
- Swiss Team: Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, School of Engineering and Architecture Fribourg, Geneva University of Art and Design, and the University of Fribourg (Lausanne, Switzerland)
- Team Alabama: University of Alabama at Birmingham and Calhoun Community College (Birmingham, Alabama)
- Team Daytona Beach: Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University and Daytona State College (Daytona Beach, Florida)
- UC Berkeley/U of Denver: University of California, Berkeley, and University of Denver (Berkeley, California)
- UC Davis: University of California, Davis (Davis, California)
- Washington U-St. Louis: Washington University (St. Louis, Missouri)
If you are interested in visiting these designs or cheering any one or more teams listed above, there are still few more days until Oct. 15, 2017.
More on various designs at Solar Decathlon 2017 will be presented in the next series of posts.
Gathered, written, and posted by Windermere Sun-Susan Sun Nunamaker
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