Thursday 2 September 2021

‘Awareness is the first step, then it takes people time to mobilise’

Awareness is the first step, then it takes people time to mobilise.

That was the suggestion from Rhonda Doyle, Director Operations, Services and Projects for Ireland at Schneider Electric, who spoke with future Net Zero about the changes witnessed since the pandemic in attitudes to climate change and environmental action.

She explained that some of the core shifts in businesses she has seen, such as setting environmental targets, bode well for a greener future.

She said: "There's a greater awareness now of smart homes, smart buildings, cars - I drive an electric car myself. People can initially be hesitant about those types of switches but because of things that happened over the last year or two, people are more aware."

From a business perspective, she remarked: "There's a greater interest now in green electricity, there's a lot around wind and solar, I'm seeing a lot of those types of projects come through the business, which is telling us that yes, the government has set ambitious goals and now people are starting to mobilise.

"More than 30% of our electricity in Ireland last year came from green electricity and as solar and wind come on board, that's going to be more than 40 or 50% by 2024/2025 - so these movements do start slow but once there's accessibility and awareness it just starts to pick up traction."

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