Energy efficiency can help householders
reduce electricity bills but has also been recommended as a tool to combat the economic downturn and climate change.
A new report calls on the leaders of the G20 nations to focus their plans of economic recovery on seven areas, including improving energy efficiency.
Published by the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research and the Grantham Research Institute (GRI) on Climate Change and the Environment, the report calls on governments to "initiate and extend programmes that provide loans to home-owners and small and medium-sized enterprises for boosting energy efficiency in buildings".
Lord Stern, chair of the GRI, said: "A global green recovery, led by the G20, can deliver immediate and long-term economic benefits, cut the risk of dangerous climate change, reduce energy insecurity and competition for natural resource."
Household energy efficiency can be improved both by installing certain measures such as efficient boilers,
insulation and double glazing and through behaviours, such as switching of all appliances at the plug when not in use.
