The statistics are overwhelming and the evidence is mounting, yet still many deny the peril facing our planet.
How to make them care? Apply social pressure. And of course, there’s an app for that.
Opower, a group merging behavioral science and data, has joined forces with Facebook and the National Resources Defense Council to create an app which allows people to compare their energy use and costs to that of their friends. Opower anticipates that social relationships and peer pressure will do more to change behavior than the dissemination of facts.
According to Opower’s founder, Alex Laskey, the app works for anyone willing to upload their usage data to their Facebook page and invite friends to do the same. It can be used to share tips and compare notes in a forum on how to conserve energy. The app takes into consideration things like weather and humidity so that consumers can see how use of appliances like air conditioners can impact utility bills.
Laskey believes the app as the potential to change the way people view energy usage in a “profound way.” Here’s hoping!
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