Energy Saving Advice

Everyone can help in reducing energy consumption in many ways. Apart from improving energy efficiency (with which we deal in a companion paper), significant energy saving opportunities exist in our homes and everyday life. Some of the most common tips for energy saving are:

• Install air temperature regulators (thermostats) in rooms that don’t have one.
• Set the thermostat at a lower temperature for heating and at a higher temperature for cooling. This can save almost 6% of the energy needed for heating or cooling per degree Celsius. For example, 21°C in the living room and 18°C in the bedroom is more than enough for heating!
• Try to minimize idle electrical loads, which are no so ‘obvious’. Don’t just switch off electrical appliances but unplug them when possible or use power plugs with a power switch.
• Switch off lights when you don’t really need them.
• Operate the washing machine and dishwasher only at full loads and at the lowest possible temperature.
• Turn off computers or screen when you are not using them, use power management capabilities to reduce energy consumption.
• Avoid using your car whenever you can. Use the public transport as often as possible and get a bike for short travels. When you cannot avoid using a car, try carpooling!

Energy Consumption and Saving

Worldwide energy use almost doubled over the last 30 years, before showing a slight decrease due to the financial crisis in 2009. The following two graphs show the world total final energy consumption by fuel or type and by region from 1971 to 2009.

Since energy transformations and especially electric power generation are identified as main causes for global warming and climate change, action is needed. This may be either in the form of increasing use of energy from renewable energy sources, or simply by consuming less energy! In order to consume less energy we could choose to use more energy efficient appliances or increase the efficiency of our buildings, or reduce energy used for transport, without any further change in our energy related behavior. The overall result in terms of fighting climate change and global warming though, may be a lot better if we focus on a behavioral change on how we consume energy. By improving the way we use energy in our everyday activities we can actually reduce energy consumption without changes in our standards of living.