An important part of reducing your ecological footprint is to convert your existing lighting to a more efficient form. It has been reported that around 9% of a households energy costs come through lighting the home. Many of us have already converted our incandescent light bulbs to the more energy efficient compact fluorescents (CFL). However as technological advances occur new forms of lighting are becoming more readily available and affordable.

One such technology is the light emitting diode (LED).  Although they have been around for many years in household appliances they are only now reaching a point where they can produce enough light for household and commercial lighting. LED lamps last 25 - 55 times longer than incandescent lamps and their high-efficiency can lead to savings of 70% - 90% in power consumption.

Until recently passive cooling has been a forgotten practice. With mass production of air-conditioners it has allowed houses to be kept unnaturally cool as long as you were willing to pay the electricity bills.  However with the ever increasing cost of energy and growing environmental awareness many home owners are once again including passive cooling into the design of their buildings.

The general definition for passive cooling is the use of technologies or design features to cool buildings in a natural way. Whether you apply passive cooling techniques to your existing home, or incorporate more efficient design principles into a new home these strategies will assist you reduce energy use and promote a comfortable, cool environment. Some of the key strategies used in this approach include:

Green building is the practice of increasing the efficiency of buildings and their use of energy, water, and materials, and reducing building impacts on human health and the environment, through better siting, design, construction, operation, maintenance, and removal - the complete building life cycle (this should lead to a reduction in the ecological footprint of the house and the people who live in it).

A similar concept is natural building, which is usually on a smaller scale and tends to focus on the use of natural materials that are available locally. Other commonly used terms include sustainable design and green architecture; however, while good design is essential to green building, the actual operation, maintenance, and ultimate disposal or deconstruction of the building also have very significant effects on buildings' overall environmental impact.

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Landscaping designed for the purpose of conserving energy is often referred to as energy efficient landscaping. An energy efficient landscape can provide not only a beautiful environment around your home but can also reduce heating and cooling costs.

The basic principles of energy efficient landscaping are;
- to keep the sun out (in summer);
- to form a wind break; and
- to keep the cool or heat in

Below some of the common design techniques used in energy efficient landscaping:

Shade
Heat from the sun can be absorbed through windows, the roof and walls of a house which in turn can lead to increased air conditioner usage. By including shading design techniques into your landscape design you can reduce the solar heat gain, and thus reduce your air-conditioning usage and costs.