IEA: Now is the time for global deployment of smart communities

March 2012: Even the International Energy Agency (IEA) is now highlighting the potential of localised, decentralised energy systems, with the Deputy Executive Director recently stating that “Smart communities – cities, towns, neighbourhoods and villages that reduce their energy demand and generate their own power from renewable sources – should play an increasingly important role across the world…A smart community is a very low energy demand community that integrates several energy supply systems – such as wind, solar and other renewable energy sources. Smart communities effectively reduce energy demand by implementing energy efficiency and energy sufficiency measures. Primary energy demand for a building in a smart community is around a third of the energy demand in the average US household and almost a half of the energy demand in the average household in the European Union.”