In applied sciences, energy efficiency refers to an approach aimed at reducing the intrinsic energy consumption of activities by addressing both the need (the principle of sufficiency) and the way in which activities are carried out, in particular by limiting excessive consumption. This should not be confused with energy efficiency, which is a primarily technological approach to reducing energy losses (extract from the ENVI-F454 course)

Bruno Villalba, as a political scientist, addresses moderation, which is first and foremost a political rather than a technical issue, as it questions the limits and purposes of our social organisation.

Far from merely extending personal ethics, policies of frugality entail a fundamental re-examination of the conditions of well-being in our materialistic and hedonistic society. Far from being a mere adjustment (efficiency), frugality challenges our intimate relationship with production, work, consumption and our lifestyles. However, choosing a life of simplicity also means accepting its consequences. Are we truly prepared to give up the dream of abundance, widespread consumption and ever-increasing purchasing power, and to adapt our freedom to the planet’s limits?

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