The power to change

The debate continues to rage about how to solve the ruinous relationship between our energy needs and the way to meet them, but there is almost universal agreement that slowing the rate of growth in energy usage would be a wonderful start in the attempt to prevent worldwide energy shortages.

 

According to the 2006 Stern Review on the Economics of Climate Change, increased efficiency of energy usage is one of the four key strategies to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions. It notes: “Efficiency gains offer opportunities both to save money and to reduce emissions, but require the removal of barriers to the uptake of more efficient technologies and methods.”

 

While many people are aware of the benefits of low energy light bulbs, it is only recently that the wider impact of our electronic device-intensive lives has had more profile. Phone chargers, always-on power supplies, standby modes - these continuous trickles of usage multiplied by the population equals a substantial problem.

 

So, based in large part on customer feedback on energy efficient options, BT is taking action.

 

Andrew Baker, general manager of BT’s consumer devices division, says: “We have committed to make 90 per cent of our consumer product range, which includes home phones, internet radios and wireless routers, more energy efficient by this summer. This is also a long-term commitment to fundamentally change every product in our range.”

 

 

He points out that consumers will benefit from reduced energy costs, which is a strong business message; although he notes that they and the planet will be best served by not throwing away products that are working perfectly just for energy efficiency.

 

He says: “That would defeat the purpose of this initiative. We are investing £2m over the next two years, so we are absolutely putting our money where our mouth is. It is about ensuring that when customers need to buy a new phone or other device, they have a more sustainable option, but we build our products to last, so we encourage responsible purchasing.”

 

Ensuring the same functionality is delivered for less energy consumption is just one aspect of the division’s initiative.

 

Baker says “This is not just a token gesture. We are also making the packaging more environmentally friendly, including reducing the size of the user guides to just six pages. We all know what most people do with their 80 page guide and it isn’t read and cherish it.

 

We are working with manufacturers to assess the environmental impacts of their manufacturing and shipping processes and what materials they use.”

 

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