By Ken Warner, Managing Director, Energy Renewals.
When high profile talks take place on the global stage it’s easy to switch off as the messages seem to be aimed at governments rather than us as individuals. In fact, nothing could be further from the truth.
The United Nations 22nd convention on climate change began on Monday 7th November in Marrakech. After the US election result and president-elect Donald Trump’s views on climate change, the delegates were predicted to be urgently discussing America’s on-going commitment to the Paris Agreement. Thus, so it can be that such high brow talks and worldwide events can seem very far removed from our everyday lives.
Disconnect
For me, this disconnect is one of the greatest failings of such conventions that are of huge global importance and without the likes of you and me won’t succeed.
Of course, for something as big as combating climate change it needs large scale international action and the coming together of so many nations to implement what was agreed in Paris is unprecedented. Much of it will be driven by legislation which is the job of individual governments, but it is also the responsibility of us on the ground to do our bit.
Fear not, I am not about to give you a lecture on global warming and the part we have to play, I will leave that for the environmentalists, activists and politicians. However, I have long been a proponent of the view that business can make savings whilst the planet benefits from our reduced carbon footprint.
How is this relevant?
So whilst you may think the discussions taking place in Marrakech known as COP22 (Conference of Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change) have little bearing on your business as a managing agent or landlord, then think again.
Its objective is to maintain the momentum of last year’s Paris Agreement when countries agreed a worldwide response to climate change was vital.
Nations around the world pledged to keep the global temperature rise this century below 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels and to put measures in place to limit it to 1.5 degrees Celsius. So how is this relevant to flat tenants, their landlords and managing agents?
It isn’t rocket science
This, I think, is where the disconnect is most apparent. There are few, if any, helpful signposts from the conference to point us, that’s you and me, in the right direction even though our actions will enable our governments to deliver on the promises made in the agreement.
When the conference opened, COP22 highlighted the role of finance, the cost of achieving its goals is inevitably a central focus and that’s absolutely crucial for us. Whether you’re a tenant, landlord or business, energy reduction needs to be financially viable and cost effective.
We all know it isn’t rocket science: reduce your energy consumption and enjoy lower bills. The knock-on effect is the reduction of a national carbon footprint which contributes to our efforts to have a global impact on climate change and thereby helping to meet the goals of the Paris Agreement.
A two-way street
I think it’s a ground up as well as top down movement and by motivating us on the ground to reduce our energy consumption, the momentum will inevitably be quicker, stronger and net more results.
The benefits, though, have to be a two-way street. You as a business, landlord, tenant or homeowner need to gain financially rather than just receive a metaphorical pat on the back for your laudable environmentally friendly efforts.
So here we are back at one of the key issues of COP22: finance or to put it bluntly, saving money, specifically on our energy bills.
However, whilst the theory is simple and straightforward, the perception of the practicality of reducing energy consumption can be insurmountable.
That’s the biggest obstacle and we see it all the time.
Telling the grandchildren
This is where we come in or third parties like us as well as the utility companies. We should be the ones building the bridges between global commitments and government policy and the logistics which are needed to reduce energy consumption at grassroots level.
By highlighting the practicalities and relative ease of energy reduction together with the costs savings to be had, the global goals will become more readily achievable. Plus, we’ll be paying lower bills and that’s good for both a business’ bottom line and our own personal pockets.
If you don’t have the in-house resource or specialist knowledge to devise, implement and continually monitor an energy reduction programme, then there are plenty of companies which can undertake this on your behalf. You simply enjoy lower energy bills and can be content in the knowledge that you are playing a crucial part in achieving the global goals set out in the Paris Agreement. That’s something to be proud of and to tell the grandchildren.
Energy Renewals are specialists in energy management for blocks of flats and apartments, as well as small and medium businesses, large corporations, and multi-site companies.
Contact them on 01753 208 125 or follow them on Twitter to stay up to date with energy news.
