In the late 1980s a Dutch graduate student by the name of Jan Hanhart came up with a novel idea. The government was planning to devote significant resources to reducing nationwide natural gas consumption by 15%. Hanhart proposed that they simply tell people what amount they were currently using, what amount they wanted them to use, and provide them with some suggestions of how they might go about reaching this national goal. The officials scoffed at the simplicity of his proposal, but he persisted.

Hanhart put an advertisement on the front page of a local weekly newspaper telling the community how much natural gas they were using and how much they should try to conserve, along with some potential ideas and suggestions for reducing their use. Soon he noted that the community was engaged in an ongoing dialogue. Everywhere he went people were asking their neighbors how much they were using and what they were doing to use less. Within just six months natural gas use had decreased by 18% - surpassing the goal.