A crowd of students, including the winners of an essay contest about alternative energy, gathered at the TPS HelmZar Challenge Course and Facility to watch the new turbine in action.

“You understand the importance of alternative energy in this community,” Tulsa Mayor Kathy Taylor told the students.

The 30-foot-tall wind turbine will have a 10 amp output, enough to power the lights in the classroom at the facility. It is a donation from Global NES-Oklahoma, a renewable energy consulting firm.

The company also provided kits for students to build alternative energy experiments. Lisa Randolph, CEO of NES affiliate Kaizen Renewable Energy, said it will be up to today’s middle schoolers to teach the world about energy.

“We need to find an alternative, and you guys are going to be the pioneers of that,” she said. Hamilton Middle School student Adriana Rodriguez, who won the essay contest, said children do pay attention to tough problems in the world, including economic trouble and the need for alternative energy.

People are “wasting the Earth,” she said.

“That’s why we have to stand up and do something about it before it’s too late,” she said. Jana Rowlands, science director for the Oklahoma State Department of Education, attended the ceremony on behalf of State Superintendent Sandy Garrett.

Wind energy will be a big part of Oklahoma’s future, and the state needs to educate more scientists who can continue its work, she said.

“I want you to remember: Science is fun,” Rowlands said. “Science is exciting.”