The Kukui Cup:
Lights Off. Game On!

What is the Kukui Cup?

The Kukui Cup is an advanced energy challenge that combines real-time energy feedback, energy education, multiple forms of incentives, and gamification techniques to support positive changes in energy behavior. The inaugural Kukui Cup was held in Fall, 2011 for over 1,000 first year students living in the Hale Aloha residence halls at the University of Hawaii.

Why is the Kukui Cup important to Hawaii?

One of the great challenges facing Hawaii today is our dependence on foreign oil, which negatively affects our security, our economy, our environment, and our next generation's ability to have a healthy, prosperous, sustainable lifestyle. The Kukui Cup raises awareness about Hawaii's oil dependency and how to work toward a better energy future.

We created the following three minute video to help explain why we believe energy issues are so important to Hawaii.

How it works

Students participating in the Kukui Cup challenge can login to the website during the challenge to gain access about their current power consumption and cumulative energy use. The site also provides short videos developed specifically for the competition that provide insight into Hawaii energy issues, and students can earn points by correctly answering questions about each video's content. Other ways to earn points include meeting a daily energy conservation goal, attending short, interactive "workshops" about energy, or going on excursions to power plants, wind farms, and more. Participation can lead to prizes including t-shirts, pizza parties, and gift certificates. By playing the game, students become knowledgeable about the energy challenges facing Hawaii and how to change their own behavior and those around them to use energy more efficiently.

The following two minute video was used to introduce students to the Kukui Cup; it is one of the first things they watched after logging in to the website:

For more information

For more information, please go to