In February 2007, Irish Life launched a “Power of One” Project to achieve a 5% reduction in energy usage at its Head office site in Abbey Street in Dublin. The total energy saving target for 2007 is 125,000 kWh.

For every kilowatt hour saved, the company is donating 10c to the Irish Life Staff Charities organisation. This is an internal organisation set up by Irish Life staff to raise funds for selected charities- one Irish, one overseas - every year.

At the end of May, the target for the first four months of the project was achieved resulting in a saving of 50,000 kWh and a payment of €5,000 to the Staff Charities.

To promote awareness of the project, Irish Life held a “Power of One Week” in the company starting on the Tuesday after the June Bank Holiday – 5th June. Events and activities for the week included a talk by Duncan Stewart to staff on the environment, a children’s art competition and a “Jungle Experience”!

The “Jungle Experience” was designed to create awareness of what might be lost through unsustainable development & energy production. Employees were able to get up close to snakes (including an anaconda), a tarantula, a scorpion and a monitor lizard. There was also a parrot who greeted visitors to the “Experience” with a friendly “Hello.” We commissioned Red Hot Productions to come up with the idea for the event and to organise it.

The week proved to very successful and it helped to raise awareness of the project – particularly among younger members of staff.

Irish Life Image 1

Irish Life Image 2

The Questionnaire:

One in 50 people in Ireland have visited powerofone.ie and we’ve heard countless stories and e-mails about how you all are getting more aware and more active. You’re taking the Power of One on board.

So, we want to hear exactly how you’re putting the power of one into action. If you’ve made any changes in your everyday life, whether at home or at work, please tell us all about it. We’ll tell your story here, so that others can read about your efforts and be inspired to do the same.

The Basics:

Your Name? Gerry Loughrey
Company name and description? Irish Life & Permanent – retail financial services
What one change have you personally made? Switching off office lights when not required.
What motivated you to put the Power of One into action? A desire to reduce our impact on the environment.
How did you or your organisation put the Power of One into action? We set a target of reducing our energy consumption in our Irish Life Head Office by 5% in 2007. We recruited “Power of One Champions” around the office to manage the project. Using the “Power of One” website and other ideas from staff, we made lots of changes to save energy.
Did you find management/owners of your organisation supportive of your activism and efforts? Very much so.
Do you know of any savings that have resulted in your making changes? Yes, we have achieved our target reduction of 5% so far this year (to the end of May)
Have you made more than one change? If so, what? Switching off all equipment at the end of each day; unplugging mobile phone chargers; encouraging staff to use the stairs instead of the lifts; installing movement sensors for lights in common areas.
What is your favourite energy saving tip? Using the stairs instead of the lift- combines energy saving and exercise!
Company Logo / Pictures to share? Yes