Power to the people: helping older Australians rethink energy efficiency
A Study of energy use among low-income older people has revealed they are being thrifty in their energy use, but with potential health and wellbeing costs.
Gerry and Jeanette de Langen are part of a project that aims to help older Australians on low incomes improve energy efficiency without compromising their comfort and wellbeing.
A team of researchers from the University of Wollongong and Macquarie University surveyed close to 1000 low-income residents aged 60 and over in the Illawarra, Southern Highlands and Shoalhaven regions of New South Wales to find out their knowledge, attitudes and practices toward energy efficient living.
The team also conducted focus group research in the community that found older Australians were equipped with a wealth of thrifty behaviours to save energy.
The research is being conducted to inform the Energy+Illawarra program that features social marketing efforts, community workshops, newsletters, web-resources, retrofits to people’s houses, and energy use support packages among other activities to open up conversations of what is energy efficiency, and to help older Australians improve energy efficiency without compromising their comfort and wellbeing.
Energy+Illawarra social marketing project lead, Dr Ross Gordon, from Macquarie University, says the research revealed that dominant understanding around energy efficiency amongst low-income older household is thrift, which is not being wasteful of money.
“In most instances, turning on heaters for long periods of time and turning lights on during the night were understood as wasteful,” he says. “Other people told us how they wrap themselves up in a blanket in winter because they thought this was the sensible thing to do to stay warm and thrifty.”
Dr Gordon says many older low-income participants spoke of growing up in an age of austerity, and understood being thrifty with money, and energy, was integral to how they thought of themselves as different from younger generations.
“They pointed out how younger people were often wasteful of money and energy by not turning off lights, heaters or unplugging television sets and microwave ovens,” he says. “The conundrum is that many low-income older households are already saving energy because of practices of thrift learnt during their lifetime.”
However, some of these thrifty practices may pose health and safety risks to low-income older households.
“We found one couple who reported that when the gentlemen got up in the night he had a bad fall in the toilet, all because he didn’t want to switch on a light,” Dr Gordon says. “Other participants spoke of balancing precariously on stools to try to unplug their microwave from the wall socket to save energy.”
“We also found people who spoke of only turning on heating and cooling just for when friends and family visited – masking what temperatures they usually live in from those closest to them.”
Dr Gordon says it was time to rethink how energy efficiency was understood.
“There needs to be a recognition that energy efficiency is using energy wisely and economically to sustain everyday life and promote wellbeing, rather than just a focus on saving costs by being thrifty,” he says.
The consortium involves a range of organisations including the University of Wollongong and Macquarie University, the Illawarra Forum, the WEA Illawarra, Warrigal Care, Royal Freemasons’ Benevolent Institution (RFBI), IRT Group, and Southern Councils Group.
Visit the website for more information on the Energy+Illawarra program.
