Reusable Energy Projects for Earth Day

By Amy Cowen on April 15, 2025 8:00 AM

Get hands-on exploring alternative and reusable energy with one of these student projects, just in time for Earth Day.

Wind turbine made with a plastic bottle - Reusable Energy Science Projects for Earth Day

Exploring Reusable and Clean Energy

The theme of Earth Day 2025 is Our Power, Our Planet, with a focus on the importance of clean and reusable energy. Students can explore strategies for obtaining energy from wind, the Sun, the ocean, and more with projects like the ones highlighted below.

Sustainability and Reusable Energy Projects

1. Energy from Wind

Use the Make the Wind Work for You! project to make a small model wind turbine to explore how wind can be used to generate energy. Question: Which rotor design produces the most energy?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zJyByg2kEnU
2. Energy from the Sun

In the Build a Solar Updraft Tower activity, students learn about solar thermal collector technology and building a simple model solar updraft tower to see if it can make a propeller spin. Question: What happens when hot air inside the tower rises?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rbhzoCb0xWM
3. Energy from Dirt

Can you use mud to generate electricity? In the Turn Mud into Energy With a Microbial Fuel Cell project, students investigate this question and the potential for using microbial fuel cells as an alternative power source. (Note: In additional projects, students can further investigate the role of bacteria in fuel cells and the value of additives like salt or urine. Question: Does the type of soil make a difference?
4. Energy from Shaking

In the Human-Powered Energy project, students explore magnetic induction, the process in which the magnetic field of a magnet moved near a conductor creates a current in the conductor. A generator uses this principle to generate electricity. In the project, students build a small electrical generator with magnets and a wire coil that creates electricity when it is (vigorously!) shaken. Question: What is the relationship between the number of magnets and the amount of power generated?

Note: This project uses the Shaking Up Some Energy Kit.
5. Energy from the Ocean

In the Wily Waves: Build an Oscillating Water Column to Extract Energy from Ocean Waves project, students build a model oscillating water to see how energy can be harnessed from waves. For a related project, see Tireless Tides: Extracting Energy from Ocean Tides. Question: How many of these model oscillating water columns would be needed to power a lightbulb?

Image: Energy Futures: MIT Energy Initiative, 2009.
6. Energy from Compost

In the Extracting Heat Energy from a Compost Pile project, students experiment to see if energy can be harvested from the heat created in a compost pile as waste decomposes. Question: Can a compost bin generate enough energy to heat water?

Image: Courtesy of Max Keller.
7. Build a Solar Oven

In the Now You're Cooking! Building a Simple Solar Oven project, students use a cardboard box to build a solar oven that can be used for cooking. For another approach to building a solar oven, see the Build a Pizza Box Solar Oven activity (shown in the video below). Question: How does a solar oven compare to a standard kitchen oven?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nhgNh3BdMsc
8. Build a Solar-Tracking Robot

In the Build a Solar-Tracking Robot project, students build and program a robot that can autonomously orient itself towards a light source. Question: What might be a benefit of a robot being able to track the Sun? (This project uses the BlueBot Robotics Kit plus an Arduino and additional parts.) For another solar-powered car project, see Build a Solar-Powered Car.
Question: What does it take to make a robot autonomously stay aligned with a light source?
9. Build a Solar Panel that Follows the Sun

In the Build and Test a Sun-Tracking Solar Panel project, students use Arduino to make a solar panel system that tracks the movement of the Sun through the day. (For a similar project using micro:bit, see Design a Mini Solar Tracker System. Question: How much more power does a solar-tracking panel produce compared to a stationary panel?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nkPoRdrsRHE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oPuld-ki4lw