By Anica Landreneau The notion of a Green New Deal has been around for a while. Thomas Friedman coined the phrase in 2007, and Green...
Archive for category: Energy Efficiency
Why Going Green Is Smart For Your Business
By EMMA ORTON Companies that want to grow and be sustainable should absolutely get ahead of the curve and strongly consider going green. Not only...
Inventive, Eco-Conscious Solutions for Shared Offices
By RAE STEINBACH Like businesses in traditional settings, coworking spaces are beginning to focus on promoting environmentally friendly designs. Freelancers are especially cognizant of their ecological...
Similarities between the Italian Hera Group and the Community Choice Energy programs in California
In the past three articles, I analyzed several aspects of the Hera Group, its strong dedication to sustainable development, and how the company is advancing energy efficiency in industry. There is one more thing I would like to mention and in particular Hera’s organizational structure and some common features with the Community Choice Energy (CCE) programs in California, also known as Community Choice Aggregation (CCA). For this purpose, I will explore data from Marin Clean Energy (MCE), which I introduced in previous articles as the subject of my research.
Delivering Energy Efficiency in Industry: How the Hera Group turned an obligation into an innovative and successful business strategy
Hera committed to energy efficiency more than ten years ago, and from what started merely as an obligation turned out to be one of the most successful and innovative approaches of the group.
Tips and Tricks for Clean Green Business Operations
The power of collective environmental action should not be a surprise when it comes to promoting the transition to a cleaner, greener planet. There are many simple changes you can make to embrace a more sustainable lifestyle. But how can businesses, particularly those first starting out, embrace the same techniques to reduce their carbon footprint, and encourage others to do the same?
Renewable integration strategies in regulated and deregulated electricity market structures
Electricity markets are complex compared to other markets such as transportation and physical commodities markets, as supply and demand are required to be matched in real time. In addition to this, mismatches in electricity load scheduling can lead to serious consequences such as blackouts. Due to its high social importance, in many countries, the electricity sector was previously owned and operated by state agencies. This has however changed, and many countries have restructured and deregulated their electricity markets. Regulated and deregulated electricity markets have their pros and cons in terms of consumer price, efficiency and environmental impacts. In this article, the case of United States is examined to compare the renewable integration strategies in these two different types of electricity markets. In the United States, the Northeast, Midwest, Texas and California have deregulated market structures while other parts have regulated markets. Currently, 24 states have a deregulated generation sector and 18 of them have deregulation at retail level also.
The Italian Energy Audits model: A “cocktail” of best practices that lead to success
In March this year, I wrote about the how the Italian model could unlock the great energy efficiency potential in the country’s SMEs. While energy audits are mandatory for large companies, Italy requires them for certain SMEs as well.
New data presented in the Energy Efficiency Annual Report 2017 published by ENEA, the Italian National Agency for New Technologies, Energy, and Sustainable Economic Development, confirms how the energy audits model continues to be successful in Italy. 2016 data reveals that 20% of the total energy audits received were performed by SMEs, and shows that potential savings between 0,8 Mtoe and 1,1 Mtoe could be achieved with a payback period equal or less then three to five years respectively.
What is the secret to this success? We already know that one of the keys is that the Italian model requires SMEs to undergo energy audits in case it is an energy consuming company, and mandatory implementations of the identified measures.
From planning to partnerships: What’s driving smart city initiatives around the world
While there is growing global interest in smart city applications, there are also significant challenges in scaling implementation and impact.
Building on the success of its annual Energy Efficiency Indicator study, Johnson Controls recently conducted its first Smart City Indicator survey to track key drivers, organizational barriers, technology trends and the status of smart city initiatives around the world. The global survey queried more than 150 leaders involved in smart city initiatives in 12 countries.
The survey findings show that the key drivers for global smart city initiatives are economic development, environmental protection and sustainability. In North America, communications infrastructure and public safety are the leading drivers. Public safety was also the greatest driver for the smallest cities in the survey. While 90 percent of survey participants claim to have smart city initiatives underway, only 7 percent are implementing a published, strategic program of initiatives. This is despite the fact that 49 percent of participants have a dedicated program office to lead their smart city initiatives.
How to design an energy efficient bedroom
Saving energy is always a good idea. In some ways, it’s part of being a good neighbor. Reducing your household’s energy consumption reduces the strain on your city’s electrical grid.
But here’s the best part: making your bedroom energy-efficient nets you significant savings on your monthly utility bills. Talk about sleeping easy.
Follow these tips to save energy in your bedroom.
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