Here is a hypothetical situation: it is 100 degrees outside and you can be wearing a white sweat suit or a dark blue sweat suit. Which would you choose?

If you paid attention in your middle school science class, you would wear the white sweat suit, because you would know that it would not absorb as much radiated energy from the sun as the dark blue suit.

Wearing clothes that absorb less radiated energy, you stay cooler. This very same concept is being applied to a new technology called photo-catalytic paint, A.K.A Heat/ultraviolet reflective paint.

The sweat suit analogy can be applied to describe what is happening with the polar ice caps. The white reflective glaciers are melting into dark blue oceans, accelerating climate change even faster.

The debate about the causes and solution for global warming continues, but regardless of which side of the argument you stand by, action is still required.

De Anza College could switch its regular exterior paint for a photo-catalytic overcoat. Doing this would save money on energy costs and reduce our carbon footprint simultaneously.

Heat reflective paint isn’t much different from regular paint, except that it is infused with finely ground glass, made of silicon that is also used in the semi-conductor industry. The glass infused paint works like a mirror by reflecting much of the UV radiation off. And the best news is that De Anza doesn’t have to give up its signature brown and beige, the paint comes in a variety of colors.

An immediate benefit of switching to heat reflective paint is that it reflects… heat! A photo-catalytic overcoat can make the interior of a room up to 20 degrees cooler than the outside temperature, and with summer just around the corner, De Anza should understand the benefits of preemptively cooling our classrooms and offices, drastically reducing air conditioning costs.

A long-term benefit of using UV reflective paint is that it will extend the life of structures. While we all know that ultra violet radiation is harmful to our skin, we rarely realize that UV radiation is destructive to all organic matter. This includes the materials we use to build our homes, offices and classrooms. Reflecting more of the sun’s radiation will prolong the life of the organic materials cultivated from endangered environments.

Scientists and inventors are racing to develop a “green” energy industry just as efficient as coal and carbon. Unfortunately, wind and solar powered televisions will not do the job alone. We must find ways of cutting back our consumption drastically. If De Anza were to make the switch to heat reflective paint, we would not only be reducing our carbon foot print and AC costs but setting a great example for other schools.