Saving energy saves money for homeowners, government agencies, schools and businesses – we all know that. Energy efficiency is also an integral segment of the broad advanced energy industry we represent here at AEE, a key part of making the energy we use secure, clean, and affordable. But it doesn’t always get the attention it deserves. Today, we hope to change that.

AEE, along with more than 150 organizations across the nation, are shining a spotlight on all the benefits of energy efficiency with the inaugural Energy Efficiency Day—and you can join in at #EEDay2016.

What’s most remarkable is the range of participants we’ve attracted, including: cities, utility commissions, utilities, federal agencies (Better Buildings – Office of Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy, U.S. Department of Energy; U.S. Environmental Protection Agency; White House Council on Environmental Quality), state agencies, and companies, plus a long list of nonprofit advocacy organizations working throughout the country. See the full list here.

Simple Goals, Easy Tools

Our goals are pretty simple. We hope to encourage more Americans to get more out of the energy they use where they live, work, learn and play. We can help them by sharing concrete examples of ways to reduce energy use and save money while meeting their energy needs. And you can join in:

• Share examples of your energy efficient technology, projects and people—your employees and your customers—in the act of saving money or working on the projects that will save money. Plan to tweet, share and post your stories, project examples, and tips throughout the day.
• Use the #EEDay2016 hashtag on all your social media channels.
• Prepare now with the #EEDay2016 Toolkit here.
• Retweet, share content from @AEEnet, your partners, and colleagues.

We ❤️  EE Technologies and Services

AEE has posts about nearly every kind of energy efficiency technology out there, so feel free to share:

• Heating and cooling represent the largest sources of energy consumption in the residential and commercial sectors, accounting for roughly 50% of energy consumed by a typical U.S. home and 40% in commercial buildings – and great targets for efficiency upgrades.
• Energy Service Companies (ESCOs) help customers reduce their energy use and costs by implementing comprehensive energy efficiency retrofits.
• Lighting accounts for 20% of energy use in commercial buildings and 10% of energy use in residential buildings. Installing efficient lighting is one of the lowest cost, fastest payoff energy efficiency improvements available today. 
• Advanced building envelope materials can reduce building energy use and costs by lowering heating and cooling loads, which account for roughly 50% of energy consumed by a typical U.S. home and 40% in commercial buildings
• Combined Heat and Power (CHP) produces electricity and useful heat from the same fuel source in an integrated system. CHP systems recover exhaust or waste heat from electricity generation for use in industrial processes, space heating, and water heating. 
• Demand Response (DR) is a grid management tool through which utilities and grid operators provide information and/or incentives to customers to encourage them to reduce energy use at specific times.

And Then There Are Jobs

We have also reported that energy efficiency supports more jobs than any other advanced energy segment. Of more than 2.7 million advanced energy jobs across the U.S., 70% are in energy efficiency.

So plan to join us and make this first-ever, national #EEDay2016 a success! Check out the #EEDay2016 hashtag on twitter, and download social assets at the button below!