Penn State Advanced Vehicle Team

So You’ve Reduced, Reused, and Recycled…Now What?

Walking into my first EcoCAR meeting, I didn’t know the first thing about vehicle propulsion systems, fuel cells, or reducing greenhouse gases. By my second day as a member of the outreach committee, I was thrown into the mix and helped out during the vehicle debut media event. Going into it I was nervous, but left with a better idea of what EcoCAR is all about and just how powerful the competition really is. Like most people, I’ve always been told to “reduce, reuse, and recycle,” but I never understood just how important it is to follow that simple environmental rule, until now. EcoCAR has shown me that there are countless ways to better the environment; everyone just needs to take the initiative to get involved!

Although I’ve only been a part of the team for a few weeks, I’ve already learned a lot. Yes, I’ve gained experience in the world of Public Relations, but it goes way beyond just my communication and media skills. It feels great to be involved in something that not only gives me an understanding of an entirely new world of technical terms, but that works towards making a positive change for our environment.

Actually seeing firsthand how many people are involved in EcoCAR and just how much work goes into the project shows that every person really can make a difference. Each student that works on the project is gaining experience that has the potential to shape the future of the car industry as we know it. That’s an extremely wonderful thing to be a part of! So please remember, even if you don’t have the innovative skills of an EcoCAR student engineer, there are still other ways to jump on the EcoCAR bandwagon. Look out for upcoming outreach events for EcoCAR at Penn State and in the community.