International Energy Saving Day Date in the current year: November 11, 2024

The SPARE program was initiated by the Norwegian Society for the Conservation of Nature in 1996. Since then, it has been implemented and developed by schools and environmental organizations in many countries, including Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bulgaria, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, North Macedonia, Moldova, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, and Uzbekistan. Russia is the country where the project is most developed, with ten regional coordinators (other countries only have one national coordinator).

The main goal of SPARE is to teach schoolchildren how to use energy and resources efficiently by educating them about sustainable use of energy and resources, renewable energy sources, etc. The idea behind SPARE is to discuss energy conservation and energy efficiency with schoolchildren, their families and local communities, encouraging them to take action. SPARE works to reduce the consumption of fossil fuel energy through educational programs and awareness events.

SPARE strives to answer the question, “Is it possible to satisfy the mankind’s demand for energy services (for heating, lighting, cooking, transportation, etc) without extra damage and dangerous consequences for the environment?” with the help of students from different countries, who develop energy efficiency and sustainable development projects under the guidance of SPARE coordinators in their countries.

SPARE created International Energy Saving Day in order to raise awareness of the importance of energy conservation and help people find ways to deal with environmental, economic and social problems related to energy consumption. International Energy Saving Day events focus on energy conservation and eco-efficiency.

The term “energy conservation” refers to the effort to reduce energy consumption by using less of an energy service. There are two main ways to conserve energy that are mutually reinforcing rather than mutually exclusive: you can use energy more efficiently (for example, invest in energy saving lamps or insulate your house to reduce heat loss) or reduce the amount of service used (for example, drive less).

The main tasks of energy conservation are to prevent the depletion of non-renewable resources and to reduce the environmental impact of fossil fuels. The implementation of renewable energy technologies (wind power, hydropower, solar energy, geothermal energy) helps solve both tasks, since renewable energy resources are easily replenished (hence the name), and most of them are carbon neutral.

Other ways to improve energy conservation are energy or carbon taxes that exist in some countries to motivate consumers reduce their energy consumption, energy efficient building design, the modernization of city infrastructure to encourage carfree cities, etc.