Over the past year or so, changes have occurred in the climate conversation. One can almost see the layers of hype and denial rolling away to reveal a rather startled but visibly relieved public hastening to not just agree with the weary experts, but to actively start questioning the role energy plays in their lives and how it squares with their core values.
What is most encouraging is how broad the conversation spectrum has become. In Switzerland over the past 20 years, I have experienced, sometimes with awe, how readily the general public takes responsibility for their own energy use. It is not difficult to have a conversation about energy with colleagues and neighbors, as there is a general acceptance of climate change and the need to conserve energy. Energy-use is a common topic in the local and national media.
In energy conversations I had over the past two decades in the US, it was sometimes difficult to broach the topic of energy use; the discussion tended to gravitate to the price of gas or heating oil, to the illogic of ethanol or to individuals’ attempts at saving energy by changing light bulbs, shopping at the local farm market or carpooling. Media coverage was dominated by sound bytes and government action, or inaction.
Much to my delight, this superficial conversation has evolved. The print media are covering innovations in solar and wind energy, and mentioning ‘green’ in a conversation is no longer met by a rolling of the eyes or a discussion of organic milk. Over the past ten years, many big corporations have been falling over themselves to initiate green programs. Conversations with fellow Americans about climate change and renewable energy have suddenly gotten more interesting. It is to be seen how corporations will fare with their promises. The US government oscillates between progressive goals and bureaucratic inaction. But the American public is now talking about energy-use. As they spread their stories about energy and the stewardship of resources, local and grassroots projects - solar panels on suburban roofs, public transit improvements and “Fix-it Workshops” - proliferate and multiply.
Last summer I had an opportunity to compare the energy conversation landscape in Switzerland and in the US directly. The second annual US/CH Energy Innovation Days held in Zurich in August brought together experts and academics from both countries for two days of workshops, panel discussions and excursions. It became clear that Switzerland is good at top-down change management, and the US is good at bottom-up change management. This observation was made by others, including the director of the Swiss Federal Office of Energy, Walter Steinmann, who stated in his closing remarks that Switzerland had a lot to learn from the US grassroots ingenuity[1]. There are strengths in both strategies. The Swiss Federal governments’ Energy Strategy 2050 adopted in 2013 has provided funding and political support to programs the US could only dream about for research at every level of government. But the growing number of programs in the US, mostly local and regional, is impressive for their diversity and effectiveness, and for bringing all sorts of people to the table.
As I pondered how to fit both strategies together to form a big picture, I realized I needed a platform where I could compare and contrast the diverse and rather exciting efforts I have discovered in the US, in Switzerland and throughout the world. As individuals, business and government at all levels are striving to match their words with actions, a lively conversation about what can and is being done becomes a vital tool. We are by nature storytellers, stories define who we are as individuals and bind us together as a culture. Stories can show us the way forward and have the power to change fear of the future into motivation for achieving our goals.
When we share our stories, everyone wins. We live in a complex world with a multitude of situations requiring many different solutions. There are many good things being done, from the top down and from the bottom up. My goal here is to collect the stories we are telling about ourselves and our communities so that we can use them and share them further.
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