Apples Reflection 1

The world has seen a lot of change since the dawn of the industrial revolution and many technologies have come and gone. As our increasing use of energy causes the release of harmful pollution into the environment, we have little choice for alternatives. Unsurprisingly, the use of renewable energy has become a political issue, in part because of the influence of lobbying by multibillion dollar energy industry giants. This has made the adaptation of renewables for the home very slow and inaccessible to consumers. Many environmentally conscious consumers want to see their impacts, but ultimately, most consumers will only be swayed by real and immediate savings. That is where Embit comes in. Our app fits into a larger renewable energy savings ecosystem, which collects energy usage statistics to offer savings to energy consumers. Our goal is to provide an app that can track their smartphone energy usage and correlate that with renewable energy entering the grid. This is going to create an even more complete picture of renewable energy consumption for individuals, making data and savings accessible at even the most granular of levels. The ultimate goal of our work is to actively encourage the adoption of renewable energy by offering consumers real savings on their energy bills.

In today’s world, sustainable energy is more important than ever. It has been clear for decades that powering our ever-growing energy needs with a shrinking supply of fuel calls for major issues down the road. Any effort we make to take steps toward a sustainable energy future are steps taken with massive leverage, as they will have sizable impact in the future. We are working with Embit to take a few such steps toward a sustainable future. Because the adoption of policy often relies on public sentiment, it is important for people to become familiar and comfortable with non-traditional forms of energy production. The Embit mobile app we’re building allows user to see in real time how much energy their mobile device is using, and how much of this energy is sustainably sourced. This app helps users get thinking about sustainable energy as it relates to their everyday lives.

This application will allow users to track their smartphone energy consumption, and compare that to renewable energy on the grid. Users will be able to see what their renewable energy use looks like, and will be able to see over time whether they are getting better or worse. There will be direct savings for users if they embrace renewable energy. Essentially, the app will help nudge users towards using more renewable energy. This is important, as larger-scale adoption of renewable energy is a solid path to tackling climate change. This larger-scale adoption will occur more smoothly when there are economic incentives to switch to renewable energy, and this app is one such example of that.