Innovative Personalised Applications to Motivate and Support Behavioural Energy Efficiency

Abstract

Under the Energy Efficiency Directive (2012/27/EU) energy companies have to achieve yearly energy savings up to 1.5% of annual sales to final consumers. Although buildings’ occupants and energy end-users seem to be gaining greater awareness of the value and need for sustainable energy practices, they do not behave in a more energy-conscious way. Existing solutions tend to be complicated, excluding buildings’ occupants from the process of understanding how the building works in terms of energy efficiency. This study presents a suite of user-centered applications, which will empower energy end-users to engage in achieving energy efficiency, using an open, secure, privacy-respectful, configurable, scalable cloud based big data infrastructure. This multi-disciplinary big data environment will integrate heterogeneous types of data, combined with emerging machine learning algorithms, distributed ledgers, blockchain technologies and a digital reward scheme through an alternative currency. These tools provide a “user – centric” framework for energy companies, local and regional authorities and third parties to empower energy end-users to take an active attitude in their energy usage. The proposed framework aims at transforming the social environment in a building to make people aware of the value of energy, and the importance of their collaboration, unlocking a potential for 12TWh energy saved in Europe.