Boulder Area Youth Celebrate the Power of Nature

“Yummy!”  This is how Lauren Rozumalski (pictured above) a seven year old student attending Thorne Ecological Institute’s summer camp described her S’more Cookie Sandwich that was baked in a solar oven.  This week, Lauren and 11 other campers have been learning all about energy, including from where it comes and how it is used. 

On Monday, Thorne campers toured Xcel Energy’s Valmont Power Plant and learned that most of our community’s energy comes from coal.  On Thursday, they learned that energy can be harnessed from the sun with a solar oven that can melt marshmallows and chocolate into a tasty treat!

The solar oven was not the only solar harvesting device on display for the kids.  Simple Solar, a local solar PV installer was also on hand with a solar bubble maker for the kids to play with as well as a 2.3KW portable solar system which they used to explain to the kids how energy from the sun can be harnessed to power Thorne’s lights, fish tanks, and photocopier.

Simple Solar first got involved with Thorne last year when their company and the City of Boulder’s Climate Smart Loan Program partnered to install a 10KW solar system at Thorne’s offices.  This system, combined with a 1.5KW wind turbine installed in 2007 provide nearly all of Thorne’s electricity.

When asked what she thought about Thorne using power from the wind and sun instead of coal at its office, Marley Williams, a fourth grader who attends Bear Creek Elementary during the school year, said, “Awesome.  Because, they don’t need a lot of energy from coal which is a non-renewable resource and pollutes the air.”

Kelle Boumansour from the City of Boulder’s Local Environmental Action Division said, “We are excited to have helped fund Thorne’s solar system.”  “Not only does the system reduce greenhouse gas emissions, but it is a great educational demonstration for the thousands of youth who visit Thorne each year.”

Thorne has been connecting kids to nature through its summer camps for more than five decades.  Recently, they started offering summer camps as well as school-based programs that teach about global warming and renewable energy.  “It is a logical extension for us,” said Erin O’Neill, Thorne’s Program Director.  “We have always taught kids about nature, and now we are teaching them about how to protect and preserve the environment.”