Addressing behavioral change towards energy efficiency in European educational buildings

TL;DR

This paper discusses a research project that develops IoT-based applications to promote energy-aware behaviors among students in European school buildings, aiming to improve energy efficiency through awareness and engagement.

Contribution

It introduces a set of adaptable applications leveraging IoT and human sensing to foster behavioral change towards energy efficiency in educational buildings.

Findings

Proposes a novel IoT-based application framework.

Highlights the importance of behavioral change for energy savings.

Demonstrates potential for increased energy awareness in schools.

Abstract

Energy consumption reserves a large portion of the budget for school buildings. At the same time, the students that use such facilities are the adults of the years to come and thus, should they embrace energy-aware behaviors, then sustainable results with respect to energy efficiency are anticipated. GAIA is a research project targeting this user domain, proposing a set of applications that a) aims at raising awareness, prompting action and fostering engagement in energy efficiency enhancement, and b) is adaptable to the needs of each facility/community. This application set relies on an IoT sensing infrastructure, as well as on the use of humans as sensors to create situational awareness.