Is Cinderella coming of Age?

I have just read an interesting article in the Economist about energy effficency. Apparently, in 2014 industrialised countries used 0.9% less electricity than in 2013 and slightly less than in 2007 before the financial crisis. It would seem that the age old relationship between GDP and electricity consumption has changed. This could be because of new technology or simply increased awareness of energy efficiency, either way it's good news, provided we can keep this going.

The article looks at vehicle technology, energy use in buildings and smart energy systems including storage and demand side management and there is a lot of good stuff happening in these areas. In fact I have made a number of investments in small start up companies in these areas. However the article goes on to say "The International Energy Agency reckons that only one-third of the available energy-saving opportunities with a cost effective payback period are taken up. For businesses and residents alike, factors including ignorance, inertia and misaligned incentives still rule" I can see evidence of all these obstacles as well as a lack of trust in organisations and businesses promoting energy efficiency.

Tackling energy usage over the long term is going to take the best minds in engineering, behavioural economics, policy design and marketing but all too often it is seen as the Cinderella of the energy sector. That has to change so that Cinderella comes of age and hopefully there will be more articles like this in the future.