A shift toward energy efficiency

Ruby Gates and Stephanie Swanson

Our understanding of energy exists in clearly defined terms: a gallon of gas, a liter of water, a quart of milk. Amps, kilowatts and megawatts rarely mean anything to us in our daily lives…until recently.

We are quickly moving away from an industrial revolution framework—one that defined our working hours, our production and our transportation system by output—to a new infrastructure is growing to replace the old—one that is based on clearly defined energy reduction goals.

This shift is evident in every sector of our lives, including at home. To our kids, water comes from the tap, electricity comes from the switch on the wall, gasoline from the pump. As we transition from fossil to renewable this dialogue will take new shape. Our basic understanding about core power sources generates new ideas, behavior and industrious natural resource technology. A new generation moves away from amps and kilowatts to wind patterns, ocean tides and sun trajectory. The simple energy basics get a facelift, courtesy of fresh perspective and a brave new technology frontier.  

Companies are putting their ears to the ground, trying to decipher this new landscape. Traditional business drivers, such as mass production for mass consumption, are quickly disintegrating, creating powerful opportunities to set profound new paradigms in place. 

And the beginning of that paradigm shift is driven by necessity. Energy costs are high, resources are scarce, competition is fierce and the workforce needs education and training to adapt to new energy systems, technologies and behavioral changes. Smart, practical business leaders understand that today’s investment in renewables and energy efficiency is not only a short-term solution for reducing operational costs, but a long-term view toward competitive advantage.  

For example, in Oregon alone, the Business Energy Tax Credit, a 35 percent tax credit for energy efficiency and renewable project investment, created more than $616 million in economic investments and wages, and more than 1,700 jobs in the last two years.

But what does that mean to you—a business leader trying to ride out this economic tempest? Is this really a time to retool or is it a time to batten down the hatches and ride out the storm?

What if the answer to that question was a resounding, Neither? What if we reframed the definition and secured a new perspective? What if energy efficiency was embraced as the new fuel? Our entire urban and industrial development map would shift, clustering like-minded fuel demands together, knitting an infrastructure dependent upon the efficiencies of the clusters as a whole.  

In this transformation, markets respond to not growing energy demands. Whole economies and new markets emerge, supporting a steady state of energy—a condition where production exceeds energy demands. Business value is measured as a return on investment with energy efficiency a core component of business strategy. Collaboration is externally reinforced by decision-makers and influence groups.

From the board room to the boiler room, every process is devoted to supporting a steady state energy plan, while delivering on product and service demand.  From utility to industry, from commercial to residential, this new paradigm creates a humming economic engine, demanding no more than our environment can regenerate and provide. 

The foundation for this significant market transformation is already well established and primed for rapid replication. For example, over the past quarter century, Pacific Northwest energy and business leaders have re-defined energy efficiency, from ‘conservation and sacrifice’ to getting more work out of less energy, according to Natural Resources Defense Council Energy program director Ralph Cavanaugh. These efforts have mobilized three Seattle-sized cities worth of energy efficiency, at a cost of less than two cents a kilowatt-hour; in essence, an entirely new business model that places energy efficiency as a power-plant equivalent resource for utilities.

But a foundation is only as good as what’s built on top of it, which is why businesses need to continue to innovate. Invest in new, clean, efficient technologies.  Advocate for necessary regulatory and policy changes that reward energy savings, green job creation, and carbon reduction.

And at the end of the day, when a decrease in demand swiftly constricts your growth and challenges your bottom line, remember you have hidden pockets of savings buried in responsible energy use. Shrink your daily demand for energy and tap into a new revenue stream for your company.

Ruby Gates and Stephanie Swanson are Principals of MarketShift Strategies –a business strategy group that aligns opportunity with market transformation. Learn more at www.marketshiftstrategies.com.