ECHO Action
Energy Conscious Households in Action (ECHO Action) was a European Union project aiming to reduce participating households' carbon emissions by 10 to 20% until 2009 through behavioural change. It built on the premise that the support provided by a group motivates people to achieve more than they would as individuals and creates a model of active and voluntary involvement of families, residents and local small businesses.
Through our long standing experience of carbon auditing, working with communities and our track record of making cuts to emissions, Carbon Descent became a partner in ECHO Action. With funding from the EU intelligent energy scheme, Transport for London and the London Boroughs of Lambeth and Greenwich, we held monthly workshop sessions with groups of about 20 households at a time to inform them on carbon reduction topics such as sustainable transport, reducing heat loss, heating controls, insulation, saving electricity and walking and cycling.
ECHO Action started in 2006 and ran for three years across Europe in Bulgaria, Germany, Italy, Lithuania, Portugal and Sweden. In total 107 households from Balham, Dulwich, Greenwich and Stockwell took part in London and achieved significant reductions. Interim results are illustrated in our progress graph and final results are available at:www.echoaction.net.