We were pleased to welcome Chris Pomfret, Founder of Community Buying unLimited to the third green breakfast of the Autumn 2012 series at Oxford on 14 November.

1. People Power:
Harnessing the
Power of the Community
Chris Pomfret
November 2012

2. Angry or excited?
“A different world cannot be built by
indifferent people”
OIL – what price?

3. Living “near” somewhere…

4. Seven year journey…

5. “they are right”

6. Passport to Pimlico

7. When a community decides…

8. Flip the relationship…
£60k in 30 months

9. Taking on a powerful industry

10. Responsible hooliganism
Locality:
“Communities ambitious for change”
DECC:
“Turning the dumbest energy smart”

11. Seeing the back of heating OIL

12. DECC business plan 2011‐15
Our vision is of a thriving, globally competitive, low
carbon energy economy. Achieving this through a long
term transition to secure, affordable, low carbon
energy on the way to an 80% cut in greenhouse gas
emissions by 2050 will mean a transformation in the
way we generate and use energy.
But as we look to the future, decarbonising our
energy use will mean far more use of electricity in our
transport system, in the way we heat our homes and
businesses, and in the way our industry operates.

13. Reinventing an anachronism

14. The epicentre…

15. The Rural Energy Smart Grid
• Knowledge is power ‐ online platform
• Remote monitoring ‐ planning
• Energy saving, money saving
• Connecting the dots
• Smoothing supply issues
• Create 1000 jobs in 2013 for NEETS
• Endless possibilities ‐ payment
• INFORMS DECC ‐ Smart Meter
• Community OIL fund ‐ 5%
• Extracting 50 million tons of CO2
Beyond the Triple Bottom Line

16. DECC writing my business plan
• “You inspired me to call Kevin at
Cornwall Council” – Cornwall Together
• Collective switching phenomenon

17. When it’s staring right at you
What about your community?

18. The possibilities? Infinite…
“I know of two things that are infinite:
The Universe and Human Stupidity…
but I am not sure about The Universe”
Chris Pomfret
Founder
chris@community‐buying.com
Twitter: @powerofthegroup

19. From a tiny village group…
• Largest community OIL buyers by volume – most ethical model
• 22 Rural Community Councils – sustainable income
• Housing Associations – reaching the vulnerable
• Tim Smit & Eden Project – Cornwall Together
• Fuel poverty – pay as you go OIL
• Transparency
• Rural Dual Fuel
• Carbon emission offsets
• Northern Ireland
• Behaviour change – energy management & security
• Energy change – renewable revolution
• Triple Bottom Line perfection – FUEL POOR, NEETS, REDUCED CO2

20. The opportunities are endless