During the two special weeks, students at Stiftsschule Engelberg have the opportunity to study a topic in depth outside of normal lessons.

Last week, for example, the young people in the 2nd OG dealt with the topic of Engelberg and energy.

As part of the International Baccalaureate (IB), the Collaborative Science Project focused mainly on the question of where the energy could come from to make Engelberg energy self-sufficient. They calculated the potential of solar plants, wind power and reservoirs, analyzed the seasonal fluctuations in energy production, examined the possibilities of energy storage and found out about district heating, heat pumps and building insulation.

Among other things, they used current data from Elektrizitätswerk Obwalden (EWO), data on the PV systems on the school grounds, on the monastery’s own Tagenstal hydropower plant as well as data from wind measurements and solar radiation. For example, they calculated that Engelberg would need around 18 hectares of PV systems to cover its annual electricity requirements of 29 GWh. They also learned that the EWO produces as much electricity in three summer days as all of Engelberg’s PV systems (115 systems) do in the entire year.

Another project was the data collection at the Engelberger Aa during a pilot study for the upcoming Internal Assessment in Geography in the 3rd OG, which was carried out as part of a “mini-intern”.

Further reports on the special week can be found on our Instagram account.