Does anyone know of any workplace campaigns to help people accept a lowering of heating in winter ("forget, the suit, wear a sweater"?) or reduction in a/c in summer ("it's nice and hot around here"?)? I would like to investigate these options, which have been encouraged and tried at the home level, and try to apply them at an institutional level. Does anyone know of anything like this that has already met success?
Cynthia van Ginkel
Canada
Lowering Heat or Air Conditioning at Work
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I was working in Japan the summer Cool Biz kicked off. There was quite a public engagement campaign to go with it. By far the only acceptable business attire was the full suit. To overcome the barriers, the Prime Minister and his cabinet modeled the behavior publicly, there were TV news magazine spots and men's wear stores that covered "how to do Cool Biz" so people would feel more comfortable adopting it.
I think this social aspect is critical. I've tried several times to bring the concept to the attention of various levels of government in Florida, but always get the same response...that thermostats have been mandated at a level that is reflective of a concern for enegry efficiency in government buildings. But they have, as yet, missed the value of public engagement to make it a cultural phenomenon. It would take little investment, and may be effective if a conscious decision was made to change the working culture of an area in favor of something more sustainable. Elected officials command so much media time anyway, it would not be difficult to promote and could set an official apart in this era of green chique (incentive for them to promote it).
j mcgee
Chief Environmental Scientist
Hillsborough County Specialized Services
United States
www.hillsborough.wateratlas.org
Cynthia,
The Cool Biz program in Japan is a great place to start. Also see links to British and South Korean programs that have launched.
http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/nation/2009/08/113_50191.html
http://hubpages.com/hub/doing-business-in-japan-during-summer--cool-biz
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601101&sid=aPqVjejK.hxU
http://www.tuc.org.uk/h_and_s/tuc-12141-f0.cfm
Good luck!
Gregory Michel
United States
...
Dear Cynthia,
there is one highly quoted success story that relates to your question about changing thermostats at work and that is the Japanese Cool Biz campaign. Started in 2005 by the Japanese Ministry of Environment, this campaign was established to reduce electricity consumption by reducing the use of air-conditioners. Thermostats within offices were set to 28 degrees Celsius, and in doing so the occupants were encouraged to wear cool comfortable clothing, ditching their ties and jackets during summer as well as wearing shorts and t-shirts to work.
This campaign was highly successful and there are many news articles related to this campaign. I have pasted the links into this reply for you below.
I hope this was of help for you. If you have any other questions or comments please feel free to ask me.
1. 'Japan Sweats It Out as It Wages War on Air Conditioning: Salarymen shed their ties and endure the shame on steamy summer days' by Sebastian Moffett, The Wall Street Journal, 18 September 2007
http://yaleglobal.yale.edu/content/japan-sweats-it-out-it-wages-war-air-conditioning
2. 'Japan Trades In Suits, Cuts Carbon Emission' by David Kestenbaum, National Public Radio website, October 2, 2007
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=14024250
Take care,
--Max
Max Deuble
PhD Student
Macquarie University
Australia