Joining Together to Protect the Planet

The mission of the International Energy Alliance is “to build a greater awareness of and an urgency for solutions, which include
conservation of energy and renewable and sustainable energy sources.”

“Interacting and sharing ideas, that’s our main goal,” said Andrew Hunter, a junior at Aliso Niguel High School, and a founding
member of IEA.

At an early age, Hunter learned the importance of connecting with others to make things happen.

“When I was little, my dad and I would go to Macaroni Grill
and then see a movie every Friday night,” Hunter said. 

Hunter and his dad, Ray Hunter, did this for so long that they got to know Scott Miller, the manager of Romano’s Macaroni Grill in Aliso Viejo.  Their friendship with Miller played a part in Andrew’s first environmental project.

Andrew wanted to do something positive for the environment,
so he and fellow student Jessica Murphy served as co-chairs to expand the plastic bottle recycling program at AVMS. To encourage more participation, the donations of plastic bottles were weighed and
recorded, and the classroom with the most donations got a free lunch—courtesy of Romano’s Macaroni Grill.

Still making an effort to help the environment, Andrew joined ANHS
classmates Josh Himley, Jessica Murphy and Mona Kalantar to form an energy club this past school year.

Energy club members meet after school and use an instrument
called a Kill A Watt to measure the amount of energy used by appliances like televisions, stereos and mini-refrigerators.  The members determine each classroom’s power usage and encourage teachers and staff to use power strips that can be turned off to save electricity.

“The overall goal is to help the school lessen their energy use,” Andrew said.

In order to increase the efforts of the ANHS energy club, Andrew formed the International Energy Alliance with Paolo Noppenberger from Laguna Beach High School, Ariela Osuna from Academy of Our Lady of Peace in San Diego and Caroline Walters from St. Margaret’s Episcopal School in San Juan Capistrano. 

Members of IEA and the ANHS Energy Club attended an Aliso Viejo city council meeting to show their support for a Green City Initiative,
which the council approved.  IEA members are currently planning eco-fairs, which will be held at St. Margaret’s Episcopal School and at JSerra Catholic High School in San Juan Capistrano.

In June, Andrew and other energy club members traveled to Shanghai, China to study environmental and energy issues in urban planning. 

“We talked to German architects about how to reduce electricity in big office buildings and about the use of solar panels,” Andrew
said.

Andrew said he is motivated to continue finding ways to conserve energy.

“If I continue what I’m doing now, hopefully, over time, it will eventually grow into a worldwide effort to help save the environment.”

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To learn more about IEA or to share information about energy conservation, please visit internationalenergyalliance.org.