Abstract
The commitment to improve energy and environmental performance in public administration is essential for the development models geared towards lasting sustainability. The Public Administration (PA) in Italy, in particular, plays a key role to affirm models oriented towards energy and environmental sustainability, thanks to a wider and more innovative approach. The PA has a dual consumer/user role, public heritage, and decision maker/planner, in promoting energy efficiency at the local level, in the light of specific problems and peculiarities. For several decades, initiatives have been launched at various levels to improve energy and environmental performance in the public administration. The aim of this study is to outline, from a critical perspective, the state of the art policy makers in Italy about energy efficiency measures in public administration. There are, however, many cultural, value-related, financial, technological, institutional, and operational issues in the PA sector that limit investments in energy efficiency. It should be noted that if, on the one hand, the PA shows a lack of knowledge and is unwilling to adopt practices and systemic tools for monitoring and control, and on the other, in terms of bureaucracy, the system appears to be far too complicated and costly. The multiple benefits linked to improved energy performance would therefore require that the PA rethink their organizational and functional models, put in place more flexible and less bureaucratic forms of management and a more dynamic, pervasive, and proactive approach towards initiatives that promote energy efficiency. The research is a contribution towards identifying the driving forces behind potential systems and tools for energy efficiency in the PA, highlighting both critical elements and opportunities, and in particular, the limits deriving from the technological, managerial, and organizational options available for energy efficiency enhancement in the sector of the Italian PA.
Highlights
The commitment to the search for an improvement of the energy performance, and the environment in Public Administration (PA) represents a crucial step for the affirmation of the development models marked by a lasting sustainability.In this scenario, the PA is called to assume a leading role in virtue of the changes that have characterized, in time and space, the community of reference and that which would have required the PA to adopt innovative ways of government, according to the logic of governance
The affirmation of energy paradigms is geared towards greater efficiency and sustainability, which is an interesting challenge and presents new opportunities for the Italian PA, which should play a leading role in the complex economic scenario, which is emerging for some years
The achievement of the multiple benefits linked to the implementation of interventions aimed at improving energy performance requires, on the part of the PA, a rethinking of organizational and functional models, looking for more flexible and less bureaucratic forms of management, and a more dynamic, pervasive approach. and proactive towards initiatives that promote energy efficiency
Summary
The commitment to the search for an improvement of the energy performance, and the environment in PA represents a crucial step for the affirmation of the development models marked by a lasting sustainability.In this scenario, the PA is called to assume a leading role in virtue of the changes that have characterized, in time and space, the community of reference and that which would have required the PA to adopt innovative ways of government, according to the logic of governance. The PA, in its various articulations, covers the dual role of consumer/user, in an optical privatistic nature, within the framework of activities related to the management of public assets and of the maker/planner, for the promotion of energy efficiency in the territory, in the light of the knowledge of the related problems and peculiarities For these reasons, through an enlarged and innovative vision, it is being asked to define and promote policies and actions for the improvement of energy efficiency. The lack of awareness of the benefits and opportunities related to the improvement of energy performance does not permit the development of a “culture” of shared energy efficiency Culture in this case expressed both in “socio-environmental” terms (e.g., environmental protection, enhancement of energy, and renewable resources, etc.) and in “individualistic” terms (e.g., everyday use energy conscious, lifestyle, buying patterns, etc.) depends on the degree of sharing of objectives, strategies, and values that the PA can spread internally and among the various external stakeholders. Through the virtuous cycle of strategic sharing and co-responsible design, using communication and training to “contaminate” vertically and across the organization and stimulate feedback flows; externally, through the enhancement in a communicational key, of what has been achieved and the involvement of all stakeholders, whatever their title of relationship with the organization.
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