True stories of the hidden barriers to residential energy efficiency
“In essence, the rebate on the boiler (which I’ve already paid for via a surcharge on my electricity bill) is captured by the plumber”
by David L. Levy
This week the temperature hit 90F in Boston, and after appropriate procrastination, I finally started replacing the winter clip-on storm [...]
My colleague and retired MIT professor John Ehrenfeld writes a very thoughtful blog called Sustainability by Design (and he has a recent book with the same title). John and I share some similar interests in complex systems, consumer culture, and the limits of business sustainability – he makes the important point in his writing that [...]
Potential exists for energy efficiency despite consumer disinterest
This is a guest contribution by my colleague Dr. Werner Kunz, Assistant Professor of Marketing at the University of Massachusetts, Boston. Professor Kunz recently collaborated with consultants A.T. Kearney in a survey-based study demonstrating little consumer interest but the potential for energy efficiency in the industry.
Marketing experts know [...]
Smart cities need smart buildings connected to a smart grid. The business opportunities associated with Demand Response, smart buildings, and smart grid have been gaining a lot of attention recently, with articles just last week in The Economist and Barron’s. Last summer a Cisco executive caused some ripples by forecasting that the convergence of IT [...]
Some clean techsectors are overhyped, while others have unrecognized potential
by David L. Levy
When most people think about clean energy, solar and wind are the first things that spring to mind. Markets for these renewable energy sources have exhibited rapid growth of about 25-30% annually, and these sectors have attracted the lion’s share of venture capital [...]
Israel is a small country of 7.5 million people with an oversized political and media footprint. It also has a growing carbon footprint problem on its current development path, as noted in the November 2009 McKinsey report on Greenhouse Gas Reduction Potential in Israel (the 5-page summary is in English, click here for full [...]
By David L. Levy
The Financial Times reported some intriguing new McKinsey data this week on carbon mitigation costs across sectors and countries. The data indicate that there are substantial differences in costs, and predictably, that building efficiency, lighting, and HVAC are the low-hanging fruit available at negative cost. The implication is that US companies [...]
But troubling outlook for manufacturing in the U.S.
by David L. Levy
Last week a student at our university sheepishly poked his head into my office and asked if I knew where the Center for Sustainable Enterprise and Regional Competitiveness (SERC) was located, as he was interested in the new University of Massachusetts clean energy programs [...]
by David L. Levy
Governor Deval Patrick of Massachusetts announced September 1st nearly $1 million in grants for educational programs that will enhance training for the state’s burgeoning clean energy industry. This is good news for climate change, for Massachusetts, and particularly for me, because a group I’m leading at the University of Massachusetts, Boston was [...]
by David L. Levy
A managerial and behavioral lens on low-cost carbon reductions
I’m writing this response to Jürgen Weiss and Mark Sarro’s excellent guest contribution while looking out of my antiquated and rusting steel casement windows in Brookline, Mass. These single pane windows, which date to the1951 construction of the house, are wintertime energy hogs [...]
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