On Tuesday, Eric told you about the redesign of the Energy Empowers site. Energy Empowers delivers stories about people like you taking both large and small steps to save energy, advance clean energy technologies, and build a more energy efficient and sustainable energy economy. Eric mentioned that even the "little things" we do to save energy make us all important to the movement toward renewable energy generation and wise energy use.

What "little things" do you do to save energy?

Each Thursday, you have the chance to share your thoughts on a question about energy efficiency or renewable energy for consumers. Please comment with your answers, and also feel free to respond to other comments.

I think about energy a lot, and I'm always looking to get other people to think more consciously about energy and the ways they use it. I frequently send links to my friends and family to interesting websites and stories about people tackling our energy issues at home and at work. I also can't help but spread the word on Facebook and Twitter about what people are doing across the country to get smart about saving energy.

Some of my favorite reminders of the rapid strides we are taking toward a clean energy future are the daily stories we feature on our Energy Empowers clean energy blog, and yesterday, we launched our brand new redesigned Energy Empowers Web site. As you may know, this engaging resource delivers stories about everyday people across the country pitching in to help each other save energy, advance innovative clean energy technologies or get to work building a more energy efficient and sustainable energy economy.

The Energy Empowers redesign is great. I love the sleek new look and flashy rotating feature box. Not only is it better organized from the home page on down, it's also easier to navigate, easier to read, and more user-friendly than before. For example, you can instantly jump to a list of stories on any major energy subject or quickly search for stories from a specific state or geographic location using the map feature.

It's also easier than ever to share these inspiring stories with your friends, family or colleagues using the "share" button beside each blog entry. From the battery manufacturer that plans to hire 80 workers in Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin, to the more than 10,000 low-income households in Ohio that now save money on their electricity bills, people are swapping stories of real progress in reaching our energy goals. Speaking of sharing, we encourage you to tell your own story about how the clean energy economy has touched your life or someone's you know. Clicking on the "Share Your Story" button at the top of the page allows you submit a story idea to the Energy Empowers staff.

The conversation is buzzing about clean energy on your favorite social media sites right now. Energy Empowers is also on Facebook, where we feature the most recent articles and encourage you to comment on stories and share them widely.

On a personal note, when I was a kid growing up in the '80s, I was bombarded by messages about reducing energy use and recycling things like newspapers, cans, and bottles. The public service announcements, combined with my awareness of some of the environmental challenges we face as a planet, created a natural reward system for conserving energy and using energy more efficiently. I'd feel a little bit better when I turned off the lights or when I rode my bike to school—just because I knew I was doing the little things to save energy.

Today I see that I was never alone in this practice. Every day, more and more people are joining us as we work together to find smarter ways to use our energy resources. It has become a movement of energy awareness, and it's at the heart of our global push to build a better economy based on renewable energy generation and wise energy use.

Eric Barendsen is a communications specialist and Presidential Management Fellow with EERE's Technology Advancement and Outreach office in Washington, D.C.

Okay, so we already pointed out the Energy Basics Web site last week. Because I'm going to talk about something on the site, I wanted to remind you all of what it is: a brand new Web site on EERE that talks about the basics of how energy efficiency and renewable energy technologies work. A little place to find out the "What is it, and how does it work?" nuggets of information, basically.

But I wanted to point out something in particular: the Energy 101 series of videos!

There are two so far, although more will be posted in the future. The two that are there now, Wind Turbines Basics and Concentrating Solar Power Basics, provide extremely easy-to-understand, entry-level introductions to the two technologies they cover. So if you need to learn the gist of how something works in just a couple of minutes, be sure to give them a look!

The site in general has a ton of information that introduces you to everything from renewable energy to buildings to industry to vehicles, but since we told you about that last week, you hopefully already gave it a glance!

Elizabeth Spencer is a communicator at DOE's National Renewable Energy Laboratory, which assists EERE in providing technical content for many of its Web sites.

On Monday, we told you about a new site on EERE called Energy Basics. Energy Basics is a resource to help answer all of your "basic" questions about energy efficiency and renewable energy technologies. Like most Web sites, Energy Basics is a work in progress, and we'd like your input on what information you need and how we can continue to improve the site. So tell us:

What questions do you have about "energy basics"?

Each Thursday, you have the chance to share your thoughts on a question about energy efficiency or renewable energy for consumers. Please comment with your answers, and also feel free to respond to other comments.

The taxi, the icon of the bustling city, is getting a makeover. Cities nationwide are encouraging taxi fleets to turn over a new leaf and reduce their petroleum consumption. As taxis average more than 55,000 miles a year, reducing one taxi's gasoline consumption can make a big difference. Fortunately, there are a number of ways fleets can improve their sustainability, including adopting hybrid, natural gas, or propane vehicles.

Although many people associate the Ford Crown Victoria with taxis, an increasing number of taxi operators are driving hybrid Toyota Priuses, Toyota Camrys, and Ford Escapes. While the Crown Vic only averages a mere 16 miles per gallon (mpg) in city driving, a Prius averages 51 mpg, an Escape 34 mpg, and a Camry 33 mpg.

John Moore, the founder of the CleanAir CABS in Boston, estimated that if the 1,900 vehicle Boston fleet switched to hybrids, they could annually save about 5 million gallons of gasoline. By reducing the amount of petroleum used, these vehicles also decrease the smog-forming and greenhouse gas emissions they produce. To encourage taxicab owners and drivers to switch, programs such as those in Boston, Cambridge, and San Antonio offer incentives to hybrid fleets that range from front-of-the-line privileges at airports to permits for additional taxis.

Another option is to switch to an entirely different fuel. The Honda Civic CNG runs on compressed natural gas (CNG), a fuel that is cleaner and has a lower carbon footprint than gasoline. In Washington, more than 160 taxis at the are fueled by CNG. The airport estimates that this fleet produces 149 fewer tons of carbon monoxide (CO) and 24 fewer tons of nitrous oxides (NO_x) annually than comparable vehicles running on gasoline. This is equivalent to removing 800 passenger vehicles from the road for a year! In cities with air quality issues, such as New York City and Los Angeles, CNG taxis can go a long way towards reducing pollution.

Similarly, propane taxis produce fewer emissions than gasoline and use a domestically produced fuel. Although there are no light-duty vehicles available that run on propane, taxi fleets can work with specialty companies to convert vehicles to run on this alternative fuel. In July, Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack visited conversion company Baker Equipment in Richmond, Virginia. He was there to celebrate the jobs that have been created through the Southeast Propane Autogas Development Program, which was supported by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. With funding from the Autogas Development Program, Baker Equipment will help several cab and livery companies switch their vehicles to propane.

Fleets adopting these technologies and fuels contribute to our country's energy independence, improve their local air quality, and decrease their carbon footprint. If you're interested in working with your city to develop a "clean cabs" program, contact your local Clean Cities coordinator. If alternative fuel or hybrid cabs are already running in your area, show them your support the next time you need a ride!

Shannon Brescher Shea is the communications manager for Clean Cities in the Vehicle Technologies Program of EERE.