Thread by @SStapczynski

Not since Carter was President are governments under pressure to ask citizens to cut energy consumption for the greater good ⚡️

🇪🇺 Europe aims to quit Russian energy addiction
🇨🇳 China grapples with power shortages
🌎 Surging fuel prices stretch grids

bloomberg.com/news/articles/…

The issues of today mirror the oil crisis in the 1970s, when producers in the Middle East stopped exporting crude to the US and its allies

US President Richard Nixon urged citizens to turn down their thermostats and set speed limits of 55 miles per hour to cut demand for oil

President Carter famously spoke directly to the American people in a “fireside chat” in 1977, wearing a yellow cardigan sweater and asking people to bear a share of the burden to solve the energy problem

His comments are as relevant today as they were back then

No US president after Carter has attempted to invoke such a spirit of sacrifice from the country’s citizens. Even Joe Biden has so far only urged for more supply both domestically and from large Middle Eastern producers

bloomberg.com/news/articles/…

(As you can guess, it isn’t terribly popular for politicians to ask citizens to cut power demand or conserve energy.)

Tokyo’s effort in the past week to avoid a catastrophic blackout is the latest example of what people everywhere may soon face, and how a unified approach can make a difference

bloomberg.com/news/articles/…

Tokyo didn’t have enough power supply on Tuesday

At the urgent request of the government, households and factories drastically reduced their power consumption by shutting off lights and turning down thermostats

In only about 12 hours, Tokyo cut total consumption equivalent to an entire day’s electricity used to light the Las Vegas Strip, averting a blackout that would have left as many as 3 million buildings in the dark

Conserving electricity in Japan is known as “setsuden,” and the word became a rallying cry in the decade following the 2011 Fukushima atomic disaster. The meltdowns shut the nation’s 54 reactors

To keep the lights on, the government asked everyone to save power -- and it worked

The years following, Japan came up with innovations to cut power consumption

One effort encouraged typically conservative office staff to replace suits and ties with short-sleeved shirts and comfortable clothes during the hot summer months, to limit use of air conditioners

Certainly, many governments around the world have asked residents to limit electricity use in times of crisis for decades (Please see: Carter cardigan pic)

But what makes Japan’s actions more unique is the extent of the cooperation among citizens, businesses and government

“Setsuden” isn’t a silver bullet -- it acts more as a last resort that comes at a cost to its citizens and sometimes the economy since it may close factories or shut offices, but it helps keep the grid running and people continue to get electricity

Framing the energy crunch to the public is key

The emergency was front and center across Tokyo on Tuesday, with households and businesses bombarded with constant reminders of the crisis. A banner on the side of the TV screamed “power shortage”

The battle against climate change in the decades ahead will make the situation more difficult, and government policies can only go so far

That means leaders will be increasingly turning to ordinary citizens to make sacrifices beyond paying exorbitant prices at the gas pump

Some European politicians started to suggest that citizens will have to do their part to cut energy consumption

“If you don’t want to act on going one degree lower for climate change, do it against Putin,” said Claude Turmes, Luxembourg’s energy minister

bloomberg.com/news/articles/…

The @IEA is encouraging a temporary thermostat reduction of 1 degree Celsius by consumers to help reduce dependence on Russia

Despite the IEA’s calls, governments around the world for the most part have been cutting fuel taxes or doling out subsidies, which has propped up demand

And now America’s push to boost supplies of liquefied natural gas to Europe is set to leave some of the world’s top buyers in Asia hunting for cargoes, igniting a global fight for every last molecule

Prices will rise and energy conservation will be key

news.bloomberglaw.com/environment-an…

Already, curtailing usage is under consideration in Germany, where more than half of gas imports come from Russia. The infrastructure regulator is talking to business about “unavoidable shutdowns” if energy supply shortages occur

ft.com/content/6b93b8…