Empower tool could save economy £500m

The Carbon Trust has released a new online service that could reduce office costs by up to £150,000.

The interactive tool has been designed to boost employee engagement with the green agenda, which could save large UK businesses and public sector bodies £500 million a year through energy and waste reductions alone.

Employers are encouraged to find savings through an online office environment that has been equipped to highlight where environmental cut-backs can be made. This could be anything from turning off a computer, which can save £39 a year per person, or using the phone or videoconferencing instead of four car journeys, which could save £150 year.

Janez Potočnik, the European Union's environment chief, recently warned that wasting valuable natural resources is contributing to the economic downturn in Europe. In a speech made in Brussels, he highlighted that wasting valuable resources, such as energy and water, is leading to a lowering of living standards due to resource-fuelled inflation.

Richard Rugg, director of Carbon Trust Programmes, believes this tool could educate businesses on how best to remedy this situation. He commented that: "Companies often struggle to harness the huge energy savings that an effectively engaged workforce can help deliver… By creating a virtual tour entirely from an employee's viewpoint, every aspect of Empower has been designed with the end-user in mind."

Posted by Joseph Hutton