What we save by saving energy

National Sweater Day, on Feb 6^th, is about sparking an important conversation on saving energy.  You lower your thermostat at home, at school, at work, you go out in your funkiest sweater, and you make a statement—to your family, your friends, your community—that energy conservation matters.  But does it? How much?

The answer might surprise you.  As it turns out, saving energy is half the battle to saving the world’s species (including us!) from the most dangerous impacts of climate change.
Here’s  why.  The globe’s leading scientists agree that to avoid the most serious and potentially irreversible threats of climate change (think: major droughts, food shortages, and species extinctions) we have to drastically cut greenhouse gas emissions in the next three decades.  WWF did some serious research to show how we can do this – and prosper by 2050.  As you’d probably expect, moving away from fossil fuels to cleaner, greener energy is key.  But we can only succeed – will only succeed—by reducing our energy demand at the same time.
And the thing is, there are huge benefits, in Canada and around the world, to making bold strides in energy conservation—in addition to the most obvious: ensuring a stable climate. Even better, those bold strides may be easier than most of us realize and the solutions are all around us.
In this mini blog series over the next few weeks, we’ll explore three of those key solutions—Retrofit it, Build it Smarter, and Sustainable Transportation.  We’ll look at how they would improve our lives, our communities, and our future.  And, most importantly, what it will take to put them in action. 
Stay tuned.  Oh, and don’t forget to share your sweater with us.