EERE Network News - 11/22/06

The concept of "six degrees of separation" is that everyone in the world is connected to everyone else through a chain of at most five acquaintances. Whether that is true or not, the Alliance to Save Energy (ASE) and 29 partners from its "Power is in Your Hands" campaign have launched a new "Six Degrees of Energy Efficiency Challenge," which is a take off on the whole "six degrees" concept. In the case of energy efficiency, the "six degrees" are the ever-widening circle of effects of our energy use, starting with the energy prices we pay and our comfort at home, and expanding to include the air we breathe and our respiratory health; our country's economic well-being; our country's energy security and safety; and finally, the world we leave behind. At the heart of the challenge is a six-question quiz and a six-part pledge, which will lead you to an opportunity to receive discounts on energy efficiency products.

The challenge is part of the "Power is in Your Hands" campaign, which kicked off nearly a year ago to emphasize that consumers have the power to employ energy efficiency and lower their heating bills. Led by ASE and the American Gas Association, the campaign brings together business, industry, utilities, trade associations, federal agencies, and community groups whose common goal is to reduce energy use in order to lower prices in the long run. The coalition's 20-plus members include DOE, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, The Dow Chemical Company, the North American Insulation Manufacturers Association, and the Edison Electric Institute.

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