Behaviour change
Did anyone see the ‘What’s Fuelling Your Energy Bill?’ episode of Panorama that went out last Monday (07 November 2011)? I have a lot of issues with the documentary and the way it portrayed the cost of renewable energy. I will not go into that here, but to get an idea of how I reacted, see articles written here , here , here and here.
But here’s what struck me - the report looked into homes officially experiencing or verging on fuel poverty. Much of this is a result of the economy, where people simply do not have the disposable incomes many once enjoyed. It is also due to the rising price of fuel – an issue I believe not totally accurately portrayed in the above BBC documentary. I have a lot of sympathy for people in this situation, and feel a lot of anger that such a situation should exist at all.
However, the premise of today’s blog is this. The show puts energy efficient behaviour in an almost negative light – we meet families who are changing the way they use energy in their home due to the rising costs of fuelling their households and decreasing household budgets. People are now considering whether they really need to turn and leave things on. Putting citizens in the position where they have to make the call between heat and food is unacceptable. However, the same cannot be said for coming to the decision of leaving the lights on or your appliances on standby.
The show claims this government “remains committed to expensive alternatives”. I would argue that until recently it was the consumer who engaged in inefficient and wasteful energy consumption behaviour.
Throughout my career as an environmental specialist, I have been stating that nothing will really change unless we can change people’s behaviours. This is slowly happening. We recycle - there is still a very small minority who feel they should have the right to dispose of any waste they create in any way they see fit, but by and large the population has embraced domestic waste segregation. These things take time, but when this change of public mindset occurs, the environmental professionals dedicated to harnessing this should be ready.
At times of crisis, look for the opportunity!
This change in energy consumers’ behaviour – even though brought about through undesirable circumstances - is an opportunity to change the way people think about their relationship with their energy consumption and how the little changes they make really can make a difference. People are ensuring their homes are better insulated; and are coming up with ways to use and waste less energy. The drivers are economic rather than environmental conscientiousness, but the results are the same. When we come out of this financial mess, it is a real hope of mine that we will be leaner, greener and that bit smarter for it. Lets not forget the lessons we are learning now, when – hopefully - someday soon we no longer need to apply them so ardently.
Written by Rebecca Mooney MIEMA, CEnv
Project Executive to Environment and Minerals & Waste Management Professional Groups