A Human Energy Harvesting Event The Fort Collins Bike Co-op’s mission is Building Community through Bicycling.
The Department of Health and Exercise Science Physical Activity Laboratory and the Department of Human Dimensions of Natural Resources at Colorado State University are organizing an innovative Earth Week event that aims to promote health, increase energy awareness and facilitate community participation. The project connects human movement, energy and societal contribution via a relatively simple d
evice: a stationary, energy harvesting bicycle. We will place these bicycles in the Lory Student Center Plaza on April 18th to try and encourage individuals to pedal and generate electricity while viewing health and energy conservation messaging. Through our partners/sponsors we plan to donate the generated electricity (plus a matching contribution) to two local non-profit organizations, the Bicycle and Pedestrian Education Coalition (BPEC) and Fort Collins Bike Co-op. BPEC aims to reduce motor vehicle/bicycle/pedestrian crashes, increase knowledge and awareness of safely sharing the road, increase the number of cyclists and pedestrians, and ultimately foster health and wellness. The Bike Co-op aims to keep Fort Collins cycling, educate our neighbors in all things bike related, keep good bikes out of the landfill, and recycle or refurbish bikes for local residents. We anticipate that human energy generating technology that benefits local organizations is a viable means of increasing community awareness of the importance of physical activity and can be used to convey public health messages regarding physical activity, energy conservation and local non-profit organizations. The project was piloted last year and proved to be very successful. This year we are planning for the event to be even larger. Our plan is to expand the program to schools, recreation and fitness facilities and worksite wellness programs.
