Archive for February 2012
Renewable Energy Sources Have Plenty To Offer Each Of Us
February 29, 2012 | 
Author Man’s over dependence on fossil fuels has brought about disastrous consequences. Global warming and Climate Change have been directly attributed to the release of green house gases due to the use of coal, oil and gas. Non-renewable energy sources are not effective, and cost far more than they offer in benefits.
Renewable energy sources absolutely sustain life because they do not emit carbon-based warming and harmful substances into the atmosphere. Additionally, it helps the people live an economical life by not paying the monthly bills on home energy consumption anymore.
Do you want to know what are renewable energy sources and how you can use them to produce free electricity to run your home? The truth about global warming is that it is becoming a much more serious problem that is becoming very hard to deal with today. The main renewable energy sources are examined below.
Solar, wind, and water are renewable energy sources that are friendly to the environment. With awareness to the limits of our natural resources, practically everyone is considering renewable energy solutions.
Residential Solar Power
The residential solar power makes a difference to your family and the Earth where you live in. With the residential solar power at home, you will be able to cut-off some financial expenses.
Harnessing solar power may be extraordinarily affordable if the energy system is all homemade. The storage cells can be used to store the power made during daytime and this will be still in the position to run during night or at times of the blackout.
To successfully turn your home into a residential solar power you need to be situated to a place where there is plenty of sunlight. An open space area would be very feasible to generate more solar energy.
Residential Wind Energy
At present, wind energy is used in a few places to generate electricity, and the feasibility of more wide spread application of this use is being studied.
Wind may be used as a renewable energy source. The energy that can be generated out of the wind power generators is limitless. Unlike the typical energy source produced by private companies, wind energy provides a lifetime power that you need.
Bio Fuels
Bio-fuels are also a renewable energy sources. They have been around for a very long time however just lately, people are beginning to take notice. Liquid bio-fuel which is the one used in cars is a natural and renewable domestic fuel that can only be used for diesel engines.
This can be made from vegetable oils mostly soy and corn. In fact diesel engines were originally created to run on vegetable oil! The nice thing about bio-fuels is that they contains no petroleum, and they are nontoxic and biodegradable.
The fact that we have so many different types of renewable energy sources to choose from means we can use them to our benefit. Some people have already proven the use of renewable energy sources to be very effective that’s why this energy saving idea has been shared to many users nowadays.
Reducing your Carbon Footprint For Journeys
How do I shrink the carbon footprint of journeys?
Tackling unnecessary mileage – is an essential part of reducing CO2 emissions. You can also do a lot to minimise waste during the journeys that have to be made.
Plan trips and driving routes to avoid traffic congestion – Getting stuck in heavy traffic dramatically increases CO2 emissions per mile travelled. Use route planning tools in advance and set radios to receive traffic alerts. It is also worth considering that the quickest route could also be the longer route and so CO2 emissions could be higher.
Drive less – Encourage drivers to think about the trips they make and to use alternatives to
driving such as video conferencing or home working. Promote car sharing, especially where a
number of employees have to go to the same meetings.
Develop a corporate travel plan – Travel plans help businesses assess and simplify their travel
needs. Smaller companies can pool resources with neighbours to share costs and increase their
target audience The Department for Transport offers a comprehensive “Essential Guide to Travel
Planning” at its web site at: www.dft.gov.uk
What is the
Alternative fuels and vehicle technology
In response to the environmental impact vehicles have and Government legislation, technology and fuel types are being developed on a continuous basis. It is worth remembering that many of these developments require higher demand levels and infrastructure enhancements to be truly effective and offer a mainstream proposition
Vehicle development
Car manufacturers are constantly improving the efficiency of conventional engines using techniques such as advanced combustion control, automatic stop-start, regenerative braking and
lightweight materials. This will significantly reduce emissions from diesel and petrol over the next
few years without requiring radical new technologies to emerge.
Alternative fuels
Bio fuels emit less fossil-derived CO2 per mile, or are made from renewable sources. By 2010, all
retail fuel sold in the UK will contain a 5% of renewable ‘bio’ fuel, which is mixed prior to
distribution. This approach does not require any enhancement to engines and doesn’t affect prices at the pump. It is possible to run vehicles on higher concentrations of biofuel. However, the vehicles may have to be modified to prevent engine damage. There are also warranty implications as well as the issue of whether there is a sufficient refuelling infrastructure.
How fuel cards can help your fleet reduce CO2
Although careful selection of vehicles and fuel types play a major role in reducing emissions, fleets can still miss out on CO2 reductions if they do not closely monitor the performance of drivers and vehicles.
Fuel cards are a powerful tool when it comes to driving down CO2 emissions. They allow fleets to
capture actual fuel consumption and so emissions, which enables them to plan and manage their
CO2 reduction programmes. Arval provide a suite of reports for use by Fleet Managers. Using information obtained from Arval fuel cards high pence per mile figures and inefficient drivers can be pinpointed. This allows
action to be taken quickly, before costs and unnecessary CO2 emissions mount up.
There are many additional benefits of using a fuel card
The cost of fuel has risen dramatically. Today, it can account for as much as 25% of your entire fleet expenditure. Our fuel card is a simple, effective way to control this cost and keep paperwork to a minimum.
Arval offers the leading fuel management service in the UK and more than 1.2 million of our fuel
cards are now used in the UK. These are just some of the benefits you will expereince from this service.
The cost-saving alternative to pay and reclaim
If you currently re-imburse your drivers on a fixed pence per mile rate, you may be paying them
too much. Fuel card reporting gives you the actual fuel cost per mile. So, you could save substantially on business travel costs by paying staff the real cost of the fuel.
Easy access across the UK
Drivers can use fuel cards at 95% of the major UK filling stations where the AllStar logo is
displayed. This includes all the leading fuel brands, motorway services and low-cost supermarket
sites. With such a large network of fuel stations to choose from, your drivers won’t waste time
and fuel searching for somewhere to refuel, therefore reducing their carbon footprint.
Manage your fuel costs through management information
You can quickly find out where your fuel spend is going at any time with secure access to reports
over the web. Not only does this information enable you to set fleet policies and monitor
compliance, you might even pinpoint potential savings too.
Taking the hassle out of invoice processing
All your fuel costs appear on a single consolidated VAT invoice. Breakdown by card and cost
centre enable you to reallocate cost and produce reports with ease. What is more, the invoice is
approved by the HMRC for tax records. So, there is no longer any need to process individual till
receipts, saving you valuable time and resources.
Secure and flexible
Advanced security features, such as the ability to detect suspect patterns of transactions, make
fuel cards safe as well as convenient. And, we can block the use of lost or stolen cards within
moments of you reporting it to us.
You can also control how the card is used, restricting transactions to fuel, oil and vehicle washes
for example. You can even decide whether to allocate cards to drivers, vehicles or both, giving you flexibility as well as control.
Tips and advice
Commercial EPCs – improving the carbon footprint of constructions
Wigan is setting the benchmark for Energy Performance Certificates. Writer George Orwell may have revealed the poverty of 1930s Wigan in the renowned novel The Road to Wigan Pier, but the wharfside has changed considerably in recent times due to a large construction scheme. This huge construction plan has led to a brand new standard for environmentally conscious developments and Commercial EPC Wigan experts have had a massive role in the project.
Commercial EPCs are now necessary by law. The number of projects in the town needing a Commercial EPC Wigan assessor has rocketed. Still, there are many construction companies that are unclear if they require a Commercial EPC for the newest North West development.
In October last year, the government declared which made EPCs a legal requirement whether a development is constructed, made available for sale or rented and in Wigan there are no exceptions. Commercial EPC Wigan certificates are required whether the property is in Standish or Standish Lower Ground.
Some construction companies that require Commercial EPC North West documents have complications in finding a reputable company for a certificate. The excellent news is that it’s an easy process.
A qualified assessor will be sent to your property to mark its Commercial EPC North West level. The Commercial EPC professional will mark a property on a grade of A to G based on its environmental efficiency.
An A means that the building’s environmental performance is superb while a G explains that it is quite low – the median grade is D. The Commercial EPC North West professional also advises with tactics on how to improve the overall energy efficiency. This commercial EPC grade helps companies lessen their carbon footprint.
Posted in Carbon accounting | 
Tags: Carbon Accounting, commercial, constructions, EPCs, Footprint, Improving | 
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Wood Pellets – A Source Of Renewable Energy
Today the world is waking up to the use of wood pellets. Being a source of naturally rich biodegradable energy these pellets can be vital once gas and oil fuels have depleted. Here we talk about how wood pellets can be great as a fuel source.
Why it is renewable?
One reason why such pellets are a source of renewable energy is because they are made of wood. While the wood burns the carbon dioxide emissions are very less since the plant would have consumed it during its growing years. This is why even carbon dioxide fossils are being increasingly used in emissions in order to reduce the overall carbon dioxide emissions into the atmosphere.
What are wood pellets?
Wood pellets are basically comprised of wasted sawdust in its compressed form. Today several countries such as Sweden, Northern America, Denmark as well as Austria employ the usage of this form of energy. Currently the UK offers a conducive environment for the use of such wood pellets. In fact these are being increasingly used here as a source of biodegradable energy.
Practical and inexpensive
The main benefit of using wood pellets is their relative ease of use, their cost effectiveness as well as being a source of renewable energy. Many hitherto touted sources of fuel like wind power, tidal power as well as solar energy have incurred criticism from many people because of their impracticality and expensive nature. However the beauty of wood pellets is that these can be employed both for electricity generation purposes as well as for fuel purposes.
On demand biodegradable energy
Another significant advantage of wood pellets is that one can derive energy from them as and when the need arises. This is in direct contrast to energy sources like solar power where it is dependant on the weather conditions. Best of all it is a source of easily renewable energy that is relatively cheaper than other energy sources.
Better than wet wood
Wood pellets can provide almost as much as double the energy as a wet wood form can! In fact just 1 kilogram of wood pellets can supply heat in comparison to a electric fire of 1 KW that has been on for over 5 hours! The way the wood pellets are used is that they are heated inside special boilers which one can use inside the home too. Even in large heavy duty industrial purposes this source of biodegradable energy can be easily used.
So on the whole, the benefits of using wood pellets is significantly large. Apart from being a source of fantastic renewable energy this wood is small in size which means it does not take up too much space. Therefore it offers good portability too! In addition it is a combustible item which has originated from nature itself. Therefore it is completely in harmony with the environment as well. It is therefore time that we as individuals started using this fabulous biodegradable energy source.
How Credible are Climate Skeptics?
While the recent vote by the US House of Representatives on clean energy and climate legislation has the rest of the world rejoicing, it has brought out a huge attack by the skeptics.They are out in force.
These people mainly come from two groups; the ultra conservatives, many of whom are also religious fundamentalists, and they hate change even more than the rest of us do and the other main group is the geologists whose research is largely funded by the mining and especially the coal and oil industry.
We need to remember that geologists are trained to look DOWN at the soil, earth’s crust and BACK to the past and Atmospheric physicists look UP at the atmosphere and at what is happening NOW and in the future. They have totally different training.
In face many geologists do not study physics at all and there is less training in common between geologists and atmospheric physicists than a gynaecologist and a dentist and you would not dream of mixing those two groups of medical professionals up. Climate change and changing weather patterns are as important as the global warming and the odd cool summer is irrelevant.
In Australia we have Professor Ian Plimer, a geologist and one whose work has discredited by the majority of the scientific community because it defies some of the laws of physics, publicising his new anti climate change book. He has labelled climate change theory an “ascientific, urban, religious, fundamentalist movement” promoted by academics and activists who would be “unemployable outside taxpayer-funded climate institutes”. Plimer says that climate change has become the new Western religion with the elements of failed European socialism and Christianity and it imposes guilt on the community, creates a fear of damnation, demands appeasement by selling indulgences to the faithful, ignores any contrary information, demonises dissenters.” This all sounds a bit UGH to me.
He is partially right in that climate always changes and there have been greater and more rapid changes in the past and we’ve had varying carbon levels in the past. But what is happening now is different, the atmospheric changes have been measured and are purely caused by man made pollution. The current problem is superimposed on top of the history described by Plimer and has a shorter time frame.
The greenhouse effect is not new it was predicted over 30 years ago to my certain knowledge because while my kids were small I taught secondary school biology so that I had school hours and holidays to fit in with my family. I taught about the potential for global warming then but never seriously thinking we would let things get as bad as they are now.
In Australia our Family First Senator Steve Fielding has made up his mind on climate change and apparently according to this self appointed “expert” the world is not warming now, and humans are not changing the climate.
The government and the country’s top scientists have tried to convince Senator Fielding, who holds a crucial vote in the upper house, that global warming is real. But he’s released a document setting out his position and he says “Global temperature isn’t rising”. I would love the bulk of scientists who are warning us of the need for urgent action to be wrong but there is too much evidence they are right and the risk to my grandchildren is too great to take. I refuse to gamble with their future!
The naysayers are having campaigns on TV and behind closed doors to scare politicians and put our children’s future at risk. Exxon, the world’s largest oil company still funds lobby groups to question global warming, despite its public pledge to cut support for climate change denial. ExxonMobil has an ethical problem in that while it tells us all that is has stopped funding the skeptics to spread misinformation, in fact it continues to do so.
ExxonMobil’s company records show they gave hundreds of thousands of dollars to the National Centre for Policy Analysis in Dallas, which received $75,000, and the Heritage Foundation in Washington, which received $50,000. The very same climate-change skeptics conference in Washington last month Family First Senator Steve Fielding attended was cosponsored by the latter.
Oil and coal are big business and I guess we can expect them to be reluctant to move their investment into new areas but we should also expect our large corporations to have basic honesty.
Studies on Climate Change
Climate change is an issue that is currently alarming scientists. The factors affecting global changes are carefully studied by famous scientists around the globe.
Climate change is a significant weather change of a given region. Also called global warming, it increases the average temperature measurement of the Earth’s surface. This involves changes in the atmosphere over durations to millions of years. It is caused by external forces, dynamic processes and human activities. Temperature, wind patterns and precipitation are the average weather alterations of climate change.
Negotiators on climate change like Dr. Adger from East Anglia Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research and University noted that the 7th Conference of Parties (COP7) in Morocco focused mainly on the reduction of emission targets so as to prevent climate change. Negotiators are the ones who help and spread a global coalition in order to cope with the changes. Different studies and research conducted by scientists suggested and has even proven to take an action on this matter.
In the Middle East, a new research regarding an Australian climate states that the rainfall in key regions will be higher than usual. The intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (PCC) projected that the storm activity would decline on the eastern Mediterranean for this century. This is as global warming continues to emerge. Results are based on climate changes on global modeling which tends to affect a smaller-scale region and needs to compare with other models.
Hence, BBSRC-supported Rothamsted Research has shown that the peach potato aphid of the United Kingdom is deemed to rise to about 1 degree on the temperature during the months of January and February. Aphids can be important indicators of climate change since they can cause damage to crops, weaken the plants, and even spread viruses. UK scientists have provided knowledge on the consequences so that other countries will adapt their studies for further development.
A study also reported on the July 2008 issue of Geophysical Research Letters describes a new evaluation method. This pertains to the frequency of present and future tropical climates as well as hurricane information. Computer models are used in representing hurricane features. However, hurricane activity predictions have casted doubts. Computer simulations also show that there is an increase in ocean temperature, allowing hurricanes to become formed easily with rapid motion. This also states that in warmer environments, hurricanes have become stronger.
A successful series of measurements in the Artic waters, set by the German Research Vessel Polarsten, has proven capabilities of an ice breaking problem. This is in order to support data on long-term two series research measurements.
Last August 10, the Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar and Marine Research of Helmholtz Association entered Iceland. In this research, an icebreaker is mentioned to be the possible means of changed in the measurements of temperature, salinity and currents up to the surface.
Dr. Agnieszka Beszczynska- Moller, an Alfred Wegener Institute oceanographer, says that the Atlantic water’s temperature has slightly decreased as compared to that of year 2006. Researchers has even observed that the Fram Strait temperature has risen to about 1, 1 Celcius since 1997 and onwards. Their monitoring sheets included the changes of physical environments and the seafloor entry of nutrients.
Researchers also want to get seismic data for a good understanding of the development. This is with regards to its tectonic interface in between the East Siberian shelf and the Mendeleev Ridge. Canadian and American researchers will also be doing similar measurements in the Northern Polar Sea.
Furthermore, at the Ecological society of America (ESA) 93rd Annual Meeting, scientists discussed the temperature-induced loss of habitats which can lead to disasters to living things. Project models on climate changes showcase a suffering effect of dry condition.
Thus, scientists have pointed out that the physical changes in our atmosphere such as sea level rise, melting polar ice caps, and storms are the main indicators of global warming. Climate change has a terrible impact on the entire ecosystem. This is the reason why developing countries continue to do research and study on how they can save habitats of different species. There are also private institutions and government entities that gather potential information, focusing on the alarming situation of the Earth’s atmosphere.
Making Your Business Energy Efficient
There are many reasons why making your company eco-friendly is such a great idea. There are also several myths about doing so – the major one being that it’s expensive. Making your company green doesn’t have to be expensive. In fact, it can save you money – so it’s really worth exploring what you can do to make a few changes.
What’s more, in today’s society where more and more people are concerning themselves with the environment, ethical companies gain more public respect. If your company proves itself to be ethical regarding environmental concerns, you could find yourself gaining a few more loyal customers who are enticed by your moral attitude.
So how can you green up your business? There are plenty of ways. The current buzz is all about reducing your carbon footprint, and one way of achieving this is by simply using less power. This may sound like a difficult task, but when you think about how many people don’t switch their computers off at the end of the night, or leave unnecessary lights on, a simple company email reminding people to do what they can to conserve precious energy is enough to make an adequate start. Conserve paper by emailing and discourage unnecessary photocopying.
Another way to go green is to make changes to your IT department. Whether you have an in house server or your company is big enough to need a data centre, large or small, these machines use a great deal of power and it is easy to curb this.
Technologies in the computing world, such as virtualisation and cloud computing have made it so that many IT aspects can be moved onto fewer servers rather than many, or placed online. Virtualisation allows you to ‘virtualise’ your servers and stack them all onto one machine that can access each interface. Cloud computing simply allows all software and applications to be accessed online, meaning far less hardware is needed and you can even let employees work from home, thus using less petrol due to being relieved of their daily commute.
Greening up your business really can be simple, and it’s cost-effective too. Using less power means lower energy bills and the two IT technologies mentioned above cost just a tiny fraction of what traditional in-house IT amounts to. Having a green business is a satisfying, ethical practice and one that could lower your carbon footprint, gain your company more public respect and help you save money – so see what you can do to start going green.
Climate Change Strategy
Underpinning any successful climate change mitigation strategy is the need to fully engage employees at every stage of the process.
Designing a successful climate change campaign
There is no shortcut to building and maintaining employee engagement with climate change activities, but there are a range of activities that have proved to be successful for many organisations addressing this topical issue.
EcoSecurities has found that there are four main components to a successful climate change campaign, which cover a range of activities designed to achieve maximum employee engagement:
1. Consultation
2. Communication
3. Education
4. Participation
Consultation
It’s vital that employees feel part of the decision-making process when selecting the right blend of internal emission reduction activities whether these include changing energy use, cutting down on paper communication, or implementing more extensive recycling schemes. By getting feedback on what employees feel is appropriate and realistic, the chances of them buying into the process are increased.
For instance, senior management could facilitate several half day workshops with representatives from all areas of the business to discuss which internal climate change mitigation activities fit with the internal culture of the business.
We’ve successfully implemented this approach with a number of clients and found that this substantially increased internal understanding of the environmental initiatives.
For example, when carbon offsetting is part of a climate change campaign, employees can be part of the decision-making team that selects the emission reduction projects that the company invest in according to criteria such as geography, technology, community benefits and culture/brand fit. This increases the likelihood that employees will feel connected to the development of the project and the surrounding community.
Communication – presenting the right messages
The cornerstone to ensuring understanding of organisational goals is the effective planning and deployment of an integrated communications strategy, which delivers meaningful and relevant environmental messages that reflect the brand values and culture of your organisation.
EcoSecurities recommends that an integrated mix of communication channels and tools be deployed as employee groups will respond differently to certain activities.
Depending on the scope of your employee engagement programme, thought must be given to the best channels to use to communicate with various stakeholders and channels.
For instance, in the automotive sector, an employee engagement campaign may be limited to direct employees or it may be extended to dealership channels. Retail businesses may also want to extend their engagement programme down the supply chain to distributors and manufacturers.
For example, BSkyB have begun evaluating and monitoring the environmental performance of key suppliers and encouraging them to improve their energy efficiency. They help to facilitate this by holding a series of workshops aimed at helping suppliers and business partners improve the environmental performance of the products and services they provide to Sky.
Recommended communication channels
- A series of cascade meetings led by team heads to outline the objectives behind the climate change strategy and how employees are key to their successful implementation.Electronic communication
- Within the company intranet site, a specific area should be created to keep all employees informed and updated on all aspects of the environmental programme.
- The team managing the climate change programme could post blogs that provide day-to-day insight into the roll out of the environmental programme and key developments.
- Screen savers communicating environmental messages could be used to keep the environmental programme front of mind amongst employees.
Printed communication
- Posters, flyers and stickers can be used to visually communicate the objectives behind the climate change programme to employees.
- Internal communications materials, including newsletters, should be utilised and could carry interviews with those managing the activities, conveying why the company is concerned with reducing its emissions.
Environmental goals
It’s vital that the right messages are communicated in the right way, at the right time in order to motivate employees to continue behaviour change and maintain enthusiasm for the process.
Management must gain feedback from employees, or employee representative groups, as to what is working and what is not to ensure that goals are realistic and achievable. CIPD research (in 2006) found that the main drivers of employee engagement were:- Having opportunities to feed your views upwards
- Feeling well-informed about what is happening in the organisation
- Believing that your managers are committed to achieving organisational goals
It’s crucial that the first two steps of your engagement campaign (consultation and communication) are not limited to the beginning of the campaign, but are sustained and developed on a long-term basis.
Raising employee awareness
For instance, all new employees receive environmental training programmes, which can then be customised for specific jobs i.e. hardware technicians, software technicians, and sales people. This ensures that employees directly relate wider environmental goals to their own jobs and understand their unique contribution to the process.
Company intranets
Company intranets provide a good tool to provide employees with easily accessible educational advice about how they can effectively reduce their carbon emissions, not only in the workplace, but within their commute and at home. In addition, there should also be an area which provides employees with a series of definitions, glossary of terms and common myth busters, to ensure they are aware of all the complexities involved in deploying a low carbon strategy. Podcasts and webinars would provide another, more interactive way of delivering educational materials.
Strategically positioned posters and stickers near energy intensive appliances with key information and statistics will provide the impetus for employees to be aware of the impact that their day-to-day working life has on the environment and take action to reduce it. Mouse mats, positioned next to computers, could also provide a source of educational messages.
Reinforcement, recognition and reward
The concept of reducing emissions needs to filter through the whole organisation in order to achieve the stated objectives. If real behavioural change is to be achieved and sustained, then reinforcement, recognition and reward of those behaviours needs to take place on an ongoing basis.
BSkyB encourage participation in environmental initiatives from its employees through their ‘Everyone plays a part’ scheme. Features of this include a lift sharing intranet site to encourage car pooling, a carbon credit card which rewards employees for reducing their own footprint, and as part of their ‘Switch Off’ campaign, the installation of permanent signs throughout Sky’s main buildings to encourage employees to reduce energy and water use.
Sky also offers initiatives to help employees reduce their carbon footprints – including a discount and £1,300 gross cash back on the purchase of a hybrid car. NEC has a CSR Awards scheme for employees, but also designates the months of June and November as ‘Environmental months’ when it rolls out a programme of interactive and engaging activities to heighten awareness and engagement of employees and get them involved in a hands-on way.
Activity ideas
In our experience the following activities can help employees from every organisation get involved on an individual and departmental basis.
- Deploy an ideas / suggestion area on the intranet for new and innovative activities that employees have identified as having the potential to further reduce greenhouse gas emissions within the organisation
- Utilise the intranet to provide employees with a means to calculate their personal emissions and facilitate the transition of good environmental behaviours from the work place into the home
- Incentivise and recognise the right environmental behaviours through ‘green employee’ award schemes
Climate change – sustainable employee engagement
• Make sure your company’s green messages effectively filter from board level to front line staff.
• Get the internal communications channel (or mix of channels) and the timing right. Don’t hide your communications in an unused area of your company intranet.
• Make it fun! Climate change should not all be about doom and gloom! Employee engagement is all about education and empowerment – reducing your emissions should be an enjoyable uplifting experience.
• Educate employees and stimulate real behaviour changes – this could be through activity days, focus groups, or employee incentive schemes - to guarantee buy-in and ensure employees are communicating your green business values appropriately.
• Ensure that the messages conveyed to employees are coherent and that your internal and external faces are aligned.
• Be consistent, coherent and holistic – eliminate contradictory signals.
• Make it simple and easy for employees, understand their level of knowledge and avoid jargon – speak a language that they will understand to add value to your brand and environmental efforts.
The Search for Renewable Energy
The need for alternative energy sources is getting urgent, hence the development of renewable energy is moving fast. Nationally and internationally various individuals and research companies are creating new and exciting energy systems. Some of these apparatus are great works and need improving for massive use. Politician’s world-wide are drafting policies and are making agreements to make greater use of these energy sources.
You can ask yourself why there is a growing need for other energy sources. What is wrong with the sources which we are using now? There are big problems with the fossil fuels we use today.
The first problem is that the fossil fuels are depleting in a rapid rate and are harder to retrieve. The consequence is that we can be facing an energy crisis in the future is we are not careful today. The energy prices will sky rocket and not be available for many individuals or countries. To avoid this doom scenario we need to find alternatives and used them to their full potential. Luckily this is already happening.
The second problem is that the fossil fuels that are widely used today are harmful for the environment. In the early seventies and eighties there were people and even scientist who preach otherwise, but today the negative effects are showing. The earth is warming up and climates are changing. There are parts in the world were there be more rain and sunshine and others parts will be come dryer then they already are. Another negative effect is that the ozone layer is getting thinner which also leads to a warming up of the earth. These two effects compliment each other and make it even more crucial to make another step in a different direction. This step will lead us to the use of renewable energy.
Another problem lies in the development of small economies. Because the energy prices for crude oil are going through the roof, these countries suffer even more. Many of these countries need crude oil for their electricity and means of transportation. These high oil prices have their effect on almost everything. The monthly electricity costs for households increase among others like transport cost and prices for basic products. Hence, these high oil prices make it harder for these small countries to grow there economies.
The solution for the above problems can be resolved by renewable energy. Our beautiful planet gives us the opportunity to make proper us of sunlight, flowing water, strong winds, and hot springs and convert these into energy. These energy sources are abundant and free to use. We must be sure that we convert the energy the right way, without causing other problems that can again hurt our environment. Luckily the many efforts by individuals and companies show that this can be done.