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| Lawrence inspires audience to “Be brilliant” at SXSW Eco in Austin, Texas AECOM Chief Sustainability Officer Gary Lawrence discusses the water, food energy nexus at the SXSW Eco conference in Austin, Texas, on Oct. 5. If, as projected, population grows from seven billion today to nine billion by 2050 along with dramatic increases in middle-class consumers in the developing world, the demand for energy will continue to escalate. Since there is no "Planet B", natural resources must be harnessed wisely so people all over the globe can enjoy a higher standard of living. Gary Lawrence, AECOM chief sustainability officer, stresses the idea that financial, natural and social systems are interconnected, and when functional systems and healthy, resilient communities are supported, stable environments are created that minimize risk and protect visions and investments. "Sustainability is the best competitive business approach we have to using scarce resources wisely and effectively, minimizing waste and making smart decisions for an uncertain future, " says Lawrence. "Don't just be green. Be brilliant." Lawrence believes the best way to drive energy policy and adoption is collaboration among businesses, government and non-governmental organizations (NGO) to create tailored solutions for specific needs at the city or regional level. In his opinion, inappropriate certainty is a barrier to sustainability because public decisions are usually based on three things: fear, aspiration and nostalgia. These agencies are in a powerful position to lead policy reform, and the key to swaying public opinion is using greater transparency, focusing on understanding and engaging citizens' consumption decisions. "People do not like to waste money and the prime driver of sustainability is cost/benefit, " says Lawrence. "Sustainable solutions are effective when they can demonstrate significant economic and human comfort benefits over the norm." Lawrence is confident that AECOM will continue to be a leader in sustainability because we have the tools needed to assess systems holistically. For example, AECOM developed a city-wide reduction assessment tool for the City of Ventura, Calif., that allows combinations of various systems to be tested for the lowest cost pathway, and total city-wide carbon and reduction targets. Pacific Gas & Electric, which serves most of Northern California, is conducting an in-home monitoring pilot program to reduce energy consumption. With AECOM's recommendations, this pilot program has demonstrated an average of 20 percent savings. "In a rapidly urbanizing world, we face a very real challenge of supporting a larger population with fewer resources, " said Lawrence. "The most successful programs make energy consumption data highly visible and accessible to increase awareness of the importance of sustainable living." Lawrence shared these thoughts as part of his "The Water Food Energy Nexus" presentation at the SXSW Eco conference on Oct. 5. The SXSW Eco conference is a three-day conference of professionals who are dedicated to fixing current economic, environmental and social problems with sustainable solutions. write your comments about the article :: © 2012 Exhibition News :: home page |