Energy efficiency: The evolution of a motherhood concept

Energy efficiency is a popular policy strategy to reduce energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions. The concept of energy efficiency is relatively simple – to use less energy for the same level of output. However, complexities emerge when applying efficiency concepts to real world processes and practices of energy consumption: subjective judgments when defining, measuring and applying energy efficiency principles, how efficiency is conceptualized and applied in policy, and how policy is designed and implemented, given social and environmental tradeoffs. This article traces the evolution of EU energy efficiency policy over seven decades to better understand underlying values and tradeoffs from a sociological perspective. Using insights from critical policy studies, the article reveals how certain values are reflected in how energy efficiency is defined and measured over time. It highlights how the conceptualization of energy efficiency has been used as an effective rhetorical device – and how some potentially relevant concepts and issues get sidelined in favor of others. The analysis illustrates how narrow conceptualizations of energy efficiency has put blinders on wider environmental and social issues. This points to the need for a more nuanced policy approach that takes into account the complexities and uncertainties of societal and policy challenges. The findings point to the need for energy efficiency policy that pays closer attention to citizens’ views and collective solutions in order to formulate more effective policy to reduce energy consumption.