LONDON , England ( CNN ) -- Amory Lovins is an environmentalist and the chairman and chief scientist of the Rocky Mountain Institute ( RMI ) . Amory Lovins founded the Rocky Mountain Institute in 1982 to promote energy efficiency . Lovins , who participated in Principal Voices in 2006 , has advocated the `` soft energy path , '' which promotes efficiency and renewable energy . He has also propagated concepts based on energy conservation , efficiency as well as the generation of energy at or near the site where it is actually used . The author of 29 books , who has also advised 19 heads of state , Lovins talks about the current state of renewable energy . CNN : Do you think the climate change debate puts too much emphasis on alternative energy and not enough on energy efficiency ? Amory Lovins : Yes . They 're both important and synergistic , but efficiency is generally larger , cheaper , and faster . CNN : You 've said that energy efficiency is n't costly , it 's actually profitable for businesses -- why do n't businesses focus more on this area ? AL : Smart businesses are raising their energy efficiency by about five to 15 percent per year . Inattentive businesses -- distracted by other matters , or forgetting that saved overhead , even if it 's a small fraction of total costs , drops straight to the bottom line , or lacking the leadership and attention to turn the many implementation barriers into business opportunities -- suffer high costs , increased risks , and lost competitive advantage . CNN : What are the most promising energy-saving technologies ? AL : There 's no short list of technologies ; energy efficiency can be greatly increased in essentially every use and sector , including uncompromised but safer cars , trucks , and planes , with three times the current efficiency ; buildings saving 80 to 90 percent of their energy and costing less to build ; and often several-fold more efficient factories . Overall , the U.S. could save half its oil and gas and three-fourths of its electricity at a cost equivalent to about an eighth of their price . RMI 's latest $ 30 billion worth of efficiency redesigns in 29 sectors have consistently found about 30 to 60 percent savings on retrofit , with two to three year paybacks , and about 40 to 90 percent savings in new facilities , with nearly always lower capital cost . Moreover , energy-saving technologies keep improving faster than they 're applied , so efficiency is an ever larger and cheaper resource . The big surprise is that integrative design -- not a technology , but a way of combining technologies -- can often make very big energy savings cost less than small or no savings . For more on how to achieve this , read my Stanford Engineering School lecture notes . CNN : Why do you oppose nuclear power ? AL : New nuclear plants are so extraordinarily costly that they would save about two to 11 times less carbon dioxide emission per dollar , about 20 to 40 times slower than investing the same money in efficient use of electricity or in `` micropower '' ( co-generation and distributed renewables ) . These competitors already provide the majority of the world 's new electrical services because they cost less and have lower financial risk than central thermal power stations do . Indeed , micropower generates more electricity than nuclear power does , and has lately been adding 30 to 41 times more capacity per year . The claimed 'nuclear revival ' is not actually happening because , despite new U.S. subsidies rivaling or exceeding new nuclear plants ' total cost , no private investors have been willing to finance them anywhere in the world ; they 're bought only by governments using public funds . Nuclear power has other serious problems -- most importantly , facilitating and cloaking the spread of nuclear bombs -- but since it 's unbuildable in a free market , it fails before one reaches those issues . CNN : What can we do as individuals in our everyday lives to waste less energy ? AL : Turn off stuff we 're not using . Weatherize our homes . Combine trips , bike , walk , carpool , use public transit . Get the most efficient energy-using devices -- vehicles , appliances , lights -- we can find . Become informed . Organize efficiency improvements in your workplace and community . Set a good example . Spread the word . Vote mindfully with your ballot , actions , and dollars .
Amory Lovins says smart businesses are becoming more energy efficient . He 's the chairman and chief scientist of the Rocky Mountain Institute . Lovins : ` ` Integrative businesses can often achieve very big energy savings '' . Lovins appeared in CNN 's Principal Voices in 2006 .