RICS participated in a two-day conference organised by Energie-Cités on the importance of communication and changing behaviour.

Energie-Cités is a network association of local authorities established in 1990 to share experience and exchange best practices in the fields of energy efficiency and clean energy supply. They currently have over 150 members in 24 countries.

Buildings are one of the focus points for Energie-Cités, as buildings consume huge amounts of energy, whilst at the same time having a high energy saving potential.

The location for the conference was Braşov, in the heart of Rumania. Over 250 participants from 27 countries participated, including a large amount of people from the east of Europe. Participants included local governmental representatives, energy suppliers and many other stakeholders.

Various workshops dealt with communication. How does one best communicate on issues such as the energy performance of public buildings and transport and mobility. Also, how to communicate with people? Local stakeholders, learners, local administration and the general public, they each require a specific approach.

A five-point strategy on how to communicate effectively contained the following steps:

• What: What do you want to say and how do you want to say it;
• To whom: Define your target group up front, set up a strategy;
• Aims: What do you want your target group to learn, how should they feel, what should they do?
• How: Which medium is best to get the desired outcome?
• Measuring: What is the effect?

Overall, what one needs is a positive campaign. Don't tell people they are to blame for global warming, but inform them they can do something about it.

One interesting project of Energie-Cités is the ‘display’ campaign, aiming at encouraging European municipalities to publicly display the energy, water and green house gas emission performances of their municipal buildings. Making energy, water and emissions visible raises awareness, and can ensure financial savings.

The photo above shows a display banner hanging outside a school in Braşov. 

If you would like more information about this conference, Energie-Cités or their campaigns, please contact Ursula Hartenberger e uhartenberger@rics.org or Sander Scheurwater e sscheurwater@rics.org.