World's Leading Energy-Efficient Nation

"Even though Japan is already among the most frugal countries in the world, the government recently introduced a national campaign, urging the Japanese to replace their older appliances and buy hybrid vehicles, all part of a patriotic effort to save energy and fight global warming. And big companies are jumping on the bandwagon, counting on the moves to increase sales of their latest models... A number of other affluent countries with few domestic energy resources of their own are responding in similar ways...the United States, the world's largest energy consumer by far, [has] lagged behind..But Japan is where energy consciousness probably reaches the highest levels...From 1973 to today, Japan's industrial sector nearly tripled its output, but kept its energy consumption roughly flat...Now Japan is embarking on a new phase."