Dressing Down to Fight Global Warming
by Jeremy Elton Jacquot, Los Angeles on 06.17.07
Remember when your mother used to tell you to just put on an extra layer when you pleaded to have the heater raised? It seems as though China’s government has decided to adopt a similar logic to encourage lower power consumption: it has called for an easing of dress codes to minimize the use of air conditioning in its public buildings.
According to China Daily, the government hopes to make this one of the key steps in its broader “26°C” campaign to keep buildings no cooler than 26°C (79°F) during the summer. The campaign, which was started in 2005, applies to schools, office buildings, supermarkets, restaurants, government agencies and various other public structures. Implementing this plan would result in energy savings of approximately 300 million kilowatt-hours of electricity, according to People’s Daily Online.
Air conditioners typically account for 30% to 50% of office buildings’ energy consumption so any step taken to curtail their use would yield significant reductions in greenhouse gas emissions. "China is exploring a different way of controlling greenhouse gas emissions," said Wan Gang, the country's Minister of Science and Technology. "We will not follow the Western countries' way of high emissions first and then reduction."
The Chinese government is not alone in pursuing this new campaign. Japan has adopted a similar plan, dubbed “Cool Biz,” to encourage office workers to dress down and keep buildings no cooler than 28°C (82°F). In an attempt to drum up support for the initiative and set a positive example, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe recently instructed his cabinet members to wear shirts instead of the traditional business clothes.
Via ::Chinese Workers Told to Wear T-Shirts to Save Energy
See also: ::Solar-Powered Air Conditioner About To Be Released, ::China Could Be World's Biggest Wind Power By 2020, ::Hydrothermal Cooling: Improving on Air-Conditioning
Chinese are very used to government-mandated energy conservation. Under Mao and Deng, the law was that no central heat was turned on in any building until November 15. Of course, Chinese now are exploring capitalism, but a patriotism-flavored call to conservation would resonate deeply with a populace historically steeped in frugality.
At my workplace we have to wear extra clothing to stay warm. It'll be 80 outside but inside it's freezing because the fat people get too hot if the AC is just kept at 72.
wow doug. strong words, but I know what you mean. I worked at an organization primarily-dominated by overweight women who would get sweaty walking up two flights of stairs when the elevator was broken. Actually that makes you wonder why an elevator used daily in a 3-story building would fail at least 3 times per month!
I never liked when I was younger, my father telling me "money doesn't grow on trees," but when your (almost) every need is provided FOR you, you don't appreciate the wisdom in those words.
Now that I live on my own, in deference to paying the premium for 100% renewable energy from my utility, my roommate and I try to spend the least amount of money possible on our utilities, which results in 50*F temps at night in winter, 65-68*F temps during the evening in winter, and no air conditioning in summer. This will be my first summer without my window-box A/C...although it's sitting in my closet should I weaken during the next few days...on the East Coast, it's supposed to be in the 90's! I live in a basement apartment, mostly shaded during the day, so hopefully our temperatures won't be too high!
This is my second year using no a/c in my home. At first I did this for conservation of money and energy, but I later learned that there are problems with climate controlled environments.
When you run air through an A/C it loses most of its negative ions. These ions are beneficial to human health, so it is helpful to cut down on the A/C or use a device to create negative ions (especially if you are in a large polluted city).
I myself don't have an air-conditioning system, or a hearter in my house. So we HAVE to adapt to these conditions. We use blankets and extra clothing to get warmer, and cold water and ice-cream to get cooler. It works, and no pollution is made. =]