In an educational institution, many everyday decisions go unnoticed: when the lights are switched on, how heating and cooling systems are used, what happens with classroom ventilation, or how much energy is consumed throughout the day. Green Campus, a project developed by Instituto Nebrija de FP in Madrid, starts from precisely this familiar reality and turns the school itself into a smart environment capable of measuring, analysing and improving its environmental impact.
The proposal achieved fourth place in the second edition of the Spanish Eco-Digithon (promoted by FPEmpresa and Innogestiona Ambiental), receiving a €300 prize for equipment for the school. Green Campus proposes transforming a traditional educational institution into a Smart Campus, where technology is used to support energy efficiency, environmental awareness and the participation of the entire educational community.
Far from being limited to a theoretical exercise, the project is conceived as a collaborative digital ecosystem. Its aim is to measure real variables from the school’s daily activity — such as temperature, humidity, CO₂ levels and electricity consumption — in order to generate useful information and encourage more responsible decision-making in classrooms and shared spaces.
To achieve this, the system relies on an infrastructure of sensors connected through the Internet of Things (IoT) and distributed throughout the facilities. These devices collect environmental and energy data, which are then processed through servers, databases and management tools. The information is displayed on browser-accessible dashboards where users can view graphs and indicators showing the school’s environmental performance.
One of the most notable aspects of Green Campus is that the information does not remain confined to the technical sphere. The project also includes a mobile application that allows users to check real-time metrics and receive alerts when anomalies or unjustified consumption peaks are detected. In this way, data becomes a tool for making decisions about the use of heating and cooling systems, lighting and ventilation, enabling students and teachers to take an active role in improving their environment.
The project’s cross-disciplinary nature is another of its major strengths. 24 students from different VET programmes have taken part in Green Campus: ASIR students were responsible for hardware, networks, servers and security; DAW students developed the API, web portal and dashboards; DAM students focused on the mobile application; and Marketing and Advertising students worked on the project identity, communication, media plan and presentation event. The entire initiative was coordinated by a team of five teachers and supervised by the school’s academic management team.
The initiative is aligned with several Sustainable Development Goals of the 2030 Agenda, including affordable and clean energy, climate action, responsible consumption, sustainable cities and the responsible use of water. One of its objectives is to achieve a real reduction of at least 10% in the school’s energy consumption through monitoring and data analysis.
In addition to its direct application at Instituto Nebrija de FP, Green Campus has been designed with transferability in mind. Its technical architecture is intended to be adapted to other educational institutions or municipal buildings with only minor adjustments, and the project also plans to publish its source code and documentation under an open licence, making it easier for the educational community to reuse and adapt the solution.
