From Sept. 29, through Nov. 21, more than 250,000 children at more than 200 elementary schools in the Tennessee Valley attended performances of “The Energized Guyz,” a 25-minute play written especially to teach young children about the importance of saving energy.
Cullman Electric Cooperative served as the co-sponsor for three local performances in Garden City, Addison and Good Hope.
Performed by actors on tour from the Minnesota-based National Theatre for Children, “The Energized Guyz” provided not only interactive entertainment for kids K-6, but also educate them about energy issues that TVA and local utilities are facing.
“If we can teach youngsters about the need to conserve energy, not only will they go home and encourage their families to become more diligent, but they also will be more likely to practice what they’ve learned in their adult lives,” TVA Energy Efficiency and Demand Response Vice President Joe Hoagland said.
TVA and local power distributors are collaborating on pilot projects intended to help reduce 1,400 megawatts of demand over the next five years, which will help reduce dependence on more costly power sources in the future, Hoagland said.
The “Energized Guyz” story revolves around hero Nikki Neutron having to solve a problem quickly. There’s a villain, of course, The Sneaker, who’s bent on hoarding electricity and wasting what he doesn’t need. Nikki Neutron learns in about 20 minutes what she needs to know about energy and why it’s bad to waste it. She has those messages repeated to her several times before she understands.
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