To realize this and speed up climate actions, Verhaar and RMI call upon political leaders to develop building and electric vehicle policies in tandem, lowering costs that are associated with both. A combined approach would also enable the installation of electric charging stations during the renovations, they argue, which fosters the switch to electric vehicles.
“By working in tandem, the switch to electric vehicles can be an effective driver for building efficiency, while building efficiency is likely to provide the lowest-cost option to address electric vehicle grid infrastructure needs,” said Jamie Mandel, Managing Director for RMI’s Buildings program. “An integrated policy approach is the only way to go if we want to limit the earth’s warming to 2 degrees Celsius.”
Signify is at the forefront of implementing energy efficiency measures. The company is committed to the World Green Building Council’s initiative to have all the buildings that it is using to be carbon neutral by 2030. In addition to that, Signify is also joining The Climate Group’s EV100 initiative to operate a 100% electric and hybrid lease fleet by 2030.
“In order to create a net zero carbon society, we need to accelerate the switch to electric vehicles. Our EV100 commitment and the shift to electric vehicles is one way our Signify employees can directly contribute to our overall efforts in driving carbon footprint reduction and becoming carbon neutral,” said Bill Bien, Chief Strategy & Marketing Officer at Signify.
“By committing to electric vehicles through our EV100 initiative, Signify is sending an important signal to the automobile industry to speed up the roll out of EVs around the world,” said Helen Clarkson, CEO, The Climate Group. “Already a member of RE100, Signify’s charging points will run off renewable energy – maximizing the environmental benefit of its EVs while providing storage solutions.”
“To accelerate the transition to a clean energy system and demonstrate the demand policy makers need to set more stringent emissions goals, we need many more global businesses to step up and take the lead on EVs,” she added.
Signify and RMI will elaborate on their research and sustainability commitments during the Global climate action summit in San Francisco, California from September 12 to 14.
Signify became the new company name of Philips Lighting as of May 16, 2018.
1 Energy Efficiency and Electric Vehicles. How buildings can pave the way for the global EV revolution. By Amy Egerter, Greg Hopkins and Jamie Mandel of the Rocky Mountain Institute and Harry Verhaar of Signify
