So here's a question for our readers: what's the best way to get people to reduce energy consumption at home?
Many economists think that the key to reducing greenhouse gas emissions is by imposing carbon taxes or other systems that will increase the cost of energy for consumers. But some researchers think that a further incentive is needed, something that will make people directly associate their behavior with the relevant energy costs. They've come up with some creative ideas.
For instance, behavioral scientists say that the vague knowledge that turning down the thermostat will save you money is not enough to make most people significantly decrease their home heating-energy consumption. But if the thermostat were programmed to tell you exactly how much you're spending on each setting, the effect would be much more powerful.
The effect is even more powerful when you can compare your energy consumption to the social norm. A study in California, for example, showed that when people's monthly electric bill listed the average energy consumption in the neighborhood, the people in above-average households significantly decreased their consumption. Those cuts were even deeper when the electric bill contained a smiling face on a below-average bill or a frowning face on an above-average bill. After that little nudge, the heavy users made even bigger cuts in consumption, while the light users remained frugal.
Smiley faces may do the trick, but more sophisticated indicators have been suggested. A glowing ball called the Ambient Orb, programmed to change colors as the price of electricity increases at peak periods, has been given to some utility customers in California, who reduced their usage by 40 percent when the ball glowed red in peak periods.
Another indicator, the Wattson, changes colors depending upon how much electricity a household is using and collects data that can be displayed on a website. Clive Thompson, a columnist for Wired, has suggested that people start displaying the Wattson data on their Facebook pages. Sounds like a good idea to me.
Many economists think that the key to reducing greenhouse gas emissions is by imposing carbon taxes or other systems that will increase the cost of energy for consumers. But some researchers think that a further incentive is needed, something that will make people directly associate their behavior with the relevant energy costs. They've come up with some creative ideas.
For instance, behavioral scientists say that the vague knowledge that turning down the thermostat will save you money is not enough to make most people significantly decrease their home heating-energy consumption. But if the thermostat were programmed to tell you exactly how much you're spending on each setting, the effect would be much more powerful.
The effect is even more powerful when you can compare your energy consumption to the social norm. A study in California, for example, showed that when people's monthly electric bill listed the average energy consumption in the neighborhood, the people in above-average households significantly decreased their consumption. Those cuts were even deeper when the electric bill contained a smiling face on a below-average bill or a frowning face on an above-average bill. After that little nudge, the heavy users made even bigger cuts in consumption, while the light users remained frugal.
Smiley faces may do the trick, but more sophisticated indicators have been suggested. A glowing ball called the Ambient Orb, programmed to change colors as the price of electricity increases at peak periods, has been given to some utility customers in California, who reduced their usage by 40 percent when the ball glowed red in peak periods.Another indicator, the Wattson, changes colors depending upon how much electricity a household is using and collects data that can be displayed on a website. Clive Thompson, a columnist for Wired, has suggested that people start displaying the Wattson data on their Facebook pages. Sounds like a good idea to me.
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