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"   Energy costs are getting expensive, whether you spend money on transportation, electricity, or gas. The market is changing rapidly with the onset of automotive technologies, renewable energy, and pending carbon regulations. In the midst of this flurry of change, one thing stands out: Americans waste a lot of electricity and its taking a toll on our wallets and the environment. Fortunately, a new form of energy consumption management is in the works that will help us conserve without sacrificing our standard of living. We&amp;#039;ve all heard of the coming &amp;quot;Smart Grid&amp;quot;, but few really know what it entails. Last week I had the opportunity to gain insight on the matter while listening to a panel of utility representatives at a conference called, &amp;quot;Smart Meters and Smart Rates: The Gateway to Smarter Homes,&amp;quot; sponsored by the Edison Electric Institute.  The goal of the Smart Grid is to decrease consumption through two-way communications between provider and consumer. As a consumer, you might soon have a vital part of this communication system installed in your own home. A Smart Meter would replace the information contained in your confusing monthly bill by providing an up-to-minute display of how you are using power, and sending that information back to your supplier. The display would include your home&amp;#039;s current consumption, as well as the electricity price which could potentially fluctuate with available supply. Surprisingly, the ability to actively see your usage has a profound impact on influencing electricity consumption habits. In 2005, a study at Oberlin College challenged students in each dorm to reduce their energy use as much as possible. They also provided students with aneasy-to-access database that showed current consumption. The immediate feedback information provided to students led to an average decrease in energy use of 32%. Many utilities have similar pilot programs which show very similar results.Depending on where you live, smart meter installations may be closer than you think. According to Senior Director of the Smart Energy Web at California based utility PG&amp;amp;amp;E, &amp;quot;we are averaging a new installation every 2 seconds.&amp;quot; Some utilities offer online information concerning your energy usage even without a Smart Meter. Contact your local utility to ask about this. For suggestions on going green and saving energy visit Good Housekeeping. "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
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