From Switzerland: the 2000-watt Society  

Jamais at WorldChanging has a good post up on efforts in Switzerland to reduce their energy consumption from 5000 watts per capita to 2000 watts per capita - not by cutting back on the standard of living (something to is unlikely to happen voluntarily across the whole population) but by radically increasing the efficiency of their energy consumption.

The "2000 Watt Society" is a radical model of efficient, high-quality living being pushed by the Swiss Council of the Federal Institute of Technology. Worldwide average energy consumption per capita is about 17,500 kilowatt hours, working out to a continuous consumption of 2000 watts. But as we all know, that per capita consumption is not evenly distributed. Switzerland, efficient for Europe, uses around 5000 watts per capita; Europe as a whole, about 6000 watts per capita. Developing nations use substantially less -- the average for Africa as a whole is about 500 watts per capita. The US, conversely, runs about 12,000 watts per person. The Swiss Council wants to move the nation as a whole towards a 2000 watts per person goal, not by cutting back on the Swiss standard of living, but by dramatically improving the energy efficiency of all aspects of life.