Question: How many UC students does it take to change a lightbulb?

Answer: Just one. But more than 50 student volunteers from UC Merced and other UC campuses in the California Public Interest Research Group (CALPIRG) Energy Service Corps will be changing a LOT of light bulbs at the Merced County Fair fairgrounds on Wednesday, March 23.

Starting at 10 a.m. March 23, student volunteers will swap old incandescent light bulbs for more energy efficient, compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs) and install weather stripping in the fairgrounds' Pavilion and Administration buildings at 900 Martin Luther King Jr. Way, Merced.

It's all part of the program's goal to slash energy usage by more than 30% and reduce greenhouse gas emissions and cutting down on pollution. The Energy Service Corps is a joint program of CALPIRG and AmeriCorps. It is being run on 14 university and community college campuses across the state to educate and engage over 30,000 Californians to reduce their energy use, save money on their utility bills, and reduce their environmental pollution. The program also plans to perform 4,000 free home energy surveys to give residents and tenants energy-saving recommendations.

The fairgrounds project is part of a five-day "Alternative Energy Spring Break" event that will bring together more than 50 students from UC Merced and other UC campuses to reduce the energy consumption of five community buildings in Merced, San Francisco, Sacramento, Los Angeles and Santa Barbara.

The Merced County Fair fairgrounds buildings were selected for the energy upgrade because, "The fairgrounds is an important community institution, not only because of it's history, but because it continues to play a big role in community life," said Danielle Lauber, the UC Merced Energy Service Corps Campus Organizer.

"With the state budget cuts fairs are facing, we can't afford to make these kinds of improvements," said Tom Musser, the fair's CEO. "Partnering with the Energy Service Corps volunteers will reduce our energy use and that will help the environment and save us money. It's a great community partnership."

Volunteers from UC Merced's Energy Service Corps have completed weatherization projects to improve energy efficiency and reduce energy consumption at two older Merced buildings, the Merced Elks Lodge and the Merced Rescue Mission.

For more information, please contact UC Merced Campus Organizer for Energy Service Corps., Danielle Lauber, at (516) 286-4422 or the Merced County Fair Marketing Director, Diane Conway, (209) 722-6514.