Author: Peggy Smedley
If we want to be more sustainable and achieve our ESG (environmental, social, and governance) goals, we need data, which of course is easier said than done. Many companies have a data challenge, meaning they are trying to pull insights from legacy systems and legacy business processes that haven’t been modernized. Perhaps this is our next step to addressing ESG in our organizations. This is exactly the conversation I recently had with Matthew Sekol, industry advocate, worldwide sustainability, Microsoft. We talked all about data on The Peggy Smedley Show this past week. He explains how Microsoft intersects with ESG in…
The benefits of the transition to net zero are clear: reduced spending on electricity and water bills and being a better steward of the environment around us. But it comes with an upfront cost for many homeowners. McKinsey suggests reaching net-zero emissions by 2050 requires a significant increase in spending on physical assets across all homes and businesses. In fact, it suggests the transformation of the global economy needed to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050 would be universal and significant, requiring $9.2 trillion in annual average spending on physical needs. One of the best ways to reach net zero is…
Homes are getting smarter and more energy efficient—but are they within reach for the average homeowner? Not yet, but scientists are now developing a new framework for HEMS (home energy-management systems). Let’s look at how this will impact home construction projects in the future and how this just make energy-efficient homes more equitable in the future. Dae-Hyun Choi, associate professor, Chung-Ang University, in South Korea, envisions a world where electric cars and energy trade between households. Today, many energy decisions can be done by a HEMS, which efficiently manages the energy consumption of home appliances, by scheduling when an appliance…
I had an opportunity to listen in on a presentation from Jon Baggett, business recruitment manager, South Carolina Dept. of Commerce, and ask some questions about what is happening in my new home state. Here is the big takeaway: South Carolina is looking to become a hub for EVs (electric vehicles). The state is seeing new projects related to electric vehicle supply chain, including everything from production of EV cells to changing manufacturing plants to retool product lines. He says when he pulled data two weeks before the presentation, there were 21 new investment projects and six expansion projects. The…
Peggy talks about standards surrounding lighting control. While adoption of such standards are low in the United States, that might change later this year. She digs into what is already happening and what is coming for smart lighting. She also discusses: How Gen Z—or screeners—have come to expect connectivity in every walk of life. The growth expected for lighting control. One big trend that is set to have a big impact on lighting control. peggysmedleyshow.com (6/14/22 – 775) IoT, Internet of Things, Peggy Smedley, artificial intelligence, machine learning, big data, digital transformation, cybersecurity, blockchain, 5G, cloud, sustainability, future of work,…
Peggy and Erica Di Ruggiero, associate professor, Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto, talk about the public health lessons we have learned from the COVID-19 pandemic that will help revitalize the public health system. She says we too often don’t learn from our lessons but hopes we will learn from COVID-19 and past pandemics. They also discuss: How COVID wasn’t the great equalizer; rather it exasperated inequities. Key recommendations coming out of public health and the need for better data. The need to reinvigorate the workforce and modernize how we collaborate and govern public health. dlsph.utoronto.ca (6/14/22…
Peggy and Frank Thompson, founder & COO, Automated Technology Company, talk about his company and how it started. He says our hope was to make everybody have the ability to get with an open system and to quit being locked into anything proprietary. They also discuss: Why companies don’t want interoperability and how the European model is about the customer. Why standards like KNX and DALI aren’t adopted in the United States. The Living Lab and how standards can be adopted. atcjomo.com (6/14/22 – 775) IoT, Internet of Things, Peggy Smedley, artificial intelligence, machine learning, big data, digital transformation, cybersecurity,…
Are we finally stalling with distracted driving or are we speeding up? Perhaps more importantly, what are we going to do about it? The answer to these questions could be life or death for construction workers who spend their days on the road and at highway jobsites. I can’t help but ask, what will it take to keep us all so that we focus on the task at hand of driving when behind the wheel of a vehicle? To be very candid, I am saddened that I still have to educate people on the topic of distracted driving and report…
Millions of U.S. homes have moderate to severe physical housing problems, including a dilapidated structure; roofing problems; heating, plumbing, and electrical deficiencies; water leaks and intrusion; pests; damaged paint; and high radon gas levels—all of which can result in a range of health issues. Enter National Healthy Homes Month, which aims to find ways to keep people of all ages healthy in their home. Happening in June, National Healthy Homes Month—created by the U.S. Dept. of Housing and Urban Development’s Office of Lead Hazard Control and Healthy Homes—is an outreach campaign designed to help people connect the dots between their…
The last two weeks on The Peggy Smedley Show, I had an opportunity to sit down with Sheila Hollis, acting executive director, United States Energy Assn., to discuss the energy crisis in the United States and across the globe—and I learned quite a bit about the challenges we face with energy and what ultimately needs to happen. Journey back with me for a minute to the 1920s, when the Federal Power Act came into being. As Hollis told me, it is a service invested with the public interest. “The public is what it is all about,” she explains. “When you…