Some crises hit unexpectedly—for instance, hurricane Katrina or the Indian Ocean tsunami. The energy crisis is something very different: a slow-motion problem unfolding in fits and starts right before our eyes, often in foreseeable ways. We know that the population of the world (and of the United States) will grow, and that people will expect an ever-rising standard of living. We know that fossil fuel resources are finite. We also know that our current methods of energy generation have significant environmental drawbacks. In short, we have the luxury of preparing for the future now.
With that in mind, DISCOVER teamed up with the National Science Foundation to set up a series of briefings on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C. Eight leading thinkers offered visions of how to make our energy supply cleaner, more efficient, and more abundant. Here we feature highlights from their presentations. None of these proposals require magical breakthroughs. All they require is action.
Lowell Ungar, senior policy analyst, Alliance to Save Energy
-Bright Idea: Treat efficiency like a fuel and make it the cornerstone of energy policy.
Energy efficiency is the first fuel and must be at the core of our nation’s energy policy. Energy efficiency is not a sideshow. It is the main show, and we’ve only begun to tap it. To achieve it, there are dozens of things you can do, many of them strictly personal and cost-effective as well. You have to know which kind of lightbulb to get. Can you install a ground source heat pump? What about tightening the walls of your home to reduce air leakage, thereby saving on heating and cooling your home? Your landlord may be choosing what equipment to put in, but since he might not pay the energy bill, he might not care how efficient it is.
