Campus Energy Student Video Contest

Entrants will create a video, three minutes or less, about their campus energy system, with a central focus on the role of district energy in their institutions’ sustainability efforts. IDEA will publish it on our YouTube page.

After IDEA publishes the video, entrants will be asked to promote it on their institution's and their personal social media channels, where points are given to those that garner the most followers, colleagues and friends to like/comment on the video. 

A select Student Video Evaluation Committee of senior IDEA members will then review the submissions and rank them based on content, message, quality and likes/comments received when they shared their video.

The committee will then select a Grand Prize winner, along with second and third place awardees as well. The three winners will be announced to the public at CampusEnergy2025 in Boston, February 3-6, 2025.

• Entrants must be students enrolled full-time or part-time in colleges and universities that are Members in Good Standing of the International District Energy Association for calendar years 2024-25.
• Entrants’ submissions must be approved by an individual who is on the Facilities or Utilities staff of their institution.
• All submitted video entries will remain the property of the International District Energy Association and all entrants must allow IDEA permission to use their submission for public education.
  

There's other fine print as well - please click the link below for official rules and regulations. 

Rules and Regulations

The videos will be selected primarily on the basis of content, educational value and production quality. The secondary criteria in the selection process will be the success of your social media campaigns to spread awareness about district energy and its role in campus sustainability.

Primary Selection Criteria
Content
---- Educational and informative content
Message
---- Power and clarity of message
---- How well the content is conveyed
Quality
---- Originality and creativity of content
---- Production quality
Secondary Selection Criteria
---- Social Media Campaign
---- The number of “likes” received by your video on the IDEA YouTube page will be recorded
---- Engagement on other social media platforms to direct viewers to the YouTube video

Read about the Selection Process

GRAND PRIZE
• The student or team of students who created the winning video will split a $2,000 cash prize, along with paid airfare + lodging to attend CampusEnergy2025 in Boston, MA, Feb 3-6, 2025 where you will have the opportunity to meet with members of the IDEA Board of Directors and key business leaders in the District Energy Industry.
• The Facilities or Utilities department of the entrant’s institution will receive 1 free conference registration and paid lodging for up to 4 nights to attend the IDEA2025 Annual Conference in Minneapolis, MN.
• The entrant’s College/University will receive public recognition from IDEA through social media and a formal press release for their commitment to reliable, economic, efficient and environmentally sound means of heating, cooling and powering their campuses.

SECOND PLACE
• The student(s) who created the second place video will receive $1,000.
• The entrant’s College/University will receive public recognition from IDEA through social media for their commitment to reliable, economic, efficient and environmentally sound means of heating, cooling and powering their campuses.

THIRD PLACE
• The student(s) who created the third place video will receive $500.
• The entrant’s College/University will receive public recognition from IDEA through social media for their commitment to reliable, economic, efficient and environmentally sound means of heating, cooling and powering their campus.

Watch The University's Winning Video!

Watch past contest winners on YouTube