Our experience has shown that involving the local population in any major performance improvement initiative– starting with business and civic leaders – rapidly creates positive outcomes.
It is important that all community members of the District of Columbia, residents and businesses alike, know the value of building a efficient green local economy. Willing or not they are active participants, as we look at nationwide or even global initiatives to conserve energy.
If we look at initiatives such as the global Sustainable Energy for All Action Agenda we see that by 2030 there are three objectives:
Ensure universal access to modern energy services;
Double the global rate of improvement in energy efficiency; and
Double the share of renewable energy in the global energy mix.
I believe the District is uniquely positioned to be a shining example thus it is essential that we educate and empower local communities to help in this undertaking. Meeting objectives, such as these, requires the District to have a central organization embedded in the community and focused on education as well as day-to-day delivery of sustainable energy programs. Our experience has shown that involving the local population in any major performance improvement initiative– starting with business and civic leaders – rapidly creates positive outcomes. I believe convening local commerce events, public forums as well as a channel specific marketing approaches will both drive individual consumer participation and create a call for community involvement.
I also believe a connection to DCPS and providing education through the schools on sustainable energy will yield successful results in raising awareness. Findings verified through independent research shows us that children tend to live on the edge of what's new and embrace new ideas so educating elementary and middle-school students about energy efficiency and sustainability will ultimately empower more households to take action.