Governments at all levels are often pilloried for bureaucracy, so it's a beautiful thing when government permitting goes smoothly--and fast.
That would be the case for the Certificate of Public Good that arrived in today's mail for the 13 KW photovoltaic project atop our building scheduled for August installation. Our contractor, Alteris, on our behalf, submitted the application on June 14, 2010 and the CPG was signed and issued July 7, 2010. Well done, Vermont Public Service Board!
If you have time to read but one report on consumer behavior and energy efficiency this year, the recent report from Accenture should be it.
The global business consultancy surveyed more than 9,000 consumers in 17 countries in January 2010 and produced a 36-page summary of its findings, "Understanding Consumer Preferences in Energy Efficiency" (http://bit.ly/9zMTSh). It's must-reading for energy efficiency marketers at utilities and energy efficiency implementation companies.
This is fun.
Mark Masteller at the Cascadia Green Building Council, in the Anchorage Daily News (adn.com), compares energy efficiency marketing to erectile dysfunction. Guess which is better marketed?
Several recent reports, including two in The New York Times by reporter Todd Woody (http://nyti.ms/aAfzYC and http://nyti.ms/dktWZO), about the Obama administration's $150 million stimulus initiative to promote energy efficiency and solar power suggest that the left hand of the federal government doesn't know what the right hand is up to.
The program in question, known as Property Assessed Clean Energy, or PACE, is a financing mechanism that allows homeowners to borrow money from their local government and repay it over 20 years through a special property tax assessment. Twenty-two states now have authorized such programs. In short, it's a clever way to finance energy savings.
It's a long way off but I'm looking forward to the Behavior, Energy & Climate Change (BECC) conference, November 14-17, in Sacramento.
That's because KSV is slated to deliver a presentation for attendees on "What Energy Efficiency Marketers Can Learn from Tobacco Counter Marketing." We're going to share our consumer insights gleaned from a decade of tobacco counter marketing.
Hats off to the good folks at the Vermont Energy Investment Corporation (VEIC, www.veic.org).
The non-profit energy efficiency pioneer just signed a $21 million, three-year deal to provide energy efficiency services to municipal electric utilities in six Midwestern states (Ohio, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Virginia, Kentucky and West Virginia). Here's the full story, courtesy of the Rutland Herald (http://bit.ly/cXFADC).
Advanced metering initiatives alone are neither necessary nor sufficient for providing households with the feedback that they need to achieve energy saving; however, they do offer important opportunities. To realize potential feedback-induced savings, advanced meters must be used in conjunction with in-home (or on-line) displays and well-designed programs that successfully inform, engage, empower, and motivate people.
So says ACEEE (American Council for an Energy Efficiency Economy), based on a metastudy of 57 residential energy efficiency programs between 1974 and 2010.
The ugliness in the Gulf of Mexico has spurred us to action.
Kelliher Samets Volk has signed an agreement with Alteris Renewables of Wilton, Connecticut to install a 13.8kW SunTech photovoltaic system on the roof of our building in Burlington, Vermont. We estimate that we will offset about 10% of our annual electricity consumption when the system is operational in August.
Once upon a time there was a car that exuded remarkable engineering and style. It had a value proposition that almost no other car manufacturer had. Its focus on its brand value created a very profitable company. That car was Mercedes. An untouchable brand star.
Then along came Audi, BMW, Lexus, and Acura who changed the landscape of the luxury car brand. And today all five of these automotive manufactures continue to invest in the brand experience. These companies continue to believe that we make our purchasing decisions based on our emotional connection to a brand. What do the luxury auto brands know that Walmart also knows?
