K-State's EcoKat
While Willie the Wildcat typically amps up crowds of purple, his new sidekick will be encouraging K-Staters to go green. Meet EcoKat, K-State's crusader of conservation and fanatic of fluorescent lightbulbs.
Along with Willie, the pair -- dubbed the EcoEnforcers -- has set out to reduce K-State's energy usage by 15 percent over the next four years by educating students about what they can do to cut back and conserve.
Beginning this week, EcoKat will show the community how to be more environmentally conscious through appearances, promotional events and a series of online Webisodes. The videos -- to be available in late August -- and corresponding website can be found at k-state.edu/ecokat.
"Part of my job is to educate the university community on ways they can conserve energy," said Casey Lauer, director of energy and environment. "My idea was to create a video that was a challenge to students -- ‘What's one thing you can to do conserve?' Because that one thing multiplied by 24,000 people equals a big change."
The EcoKat video idea was born from a serious call to action that morphed into a more humorous, tough-love take on environmentalism, inspired by Reebok's popular Terry Tate Office Linebacker commercial series and "The Biggest Loser" personal trainer Jillian Michaels.
Willie the Wildcat was added into the equation to make the campaign uniquely K-State, because he is an adored and recognizable character in the community.
"We didn't want to go over the top with it, so that's when Willie was brought in as her muscle. She's the brain and Willie's her back up," Lauer said. "It has the same feel as the Terry Tate series, but it was different enough with the EcoEnforcers spin that it gained its own sense of identity."
The EcoEnforcers project initially began as a behavioral education tool to make students aware of their energy consumption, Lauer said. But once the groundwork was established, it grew to include more facets like the Take Charge! Challenge, which runs through September.
EcoKat, who is played by a K-State senior who auditioned for the role, is outfitted in a costume made of 90 percent repurposed materials, coming mostly from the athletics department. The department of apparel, textiles and interior design used eco-friendly dyes to get the final look, making it entirely sustainable and recyclable within K-State.
The university will be able to measure EcoKat's success by determining changes in energy usage based on data collected prior and during this project. Energy dashboards will be set up in buildings around campus to show how much energy is being used and where it can be reduced.
"The energy dashboards display real-time energy consumption and are a learning tool for feedback and awareness," Lauer said. "They serve as a window into prioritizing how and where to improve conditions on campus."
http://www.kstatecollegian.com/news/k-state-s-ecokat-makes-green-debut-1.2611668