THE Beehive on today’s It’s Our World page is showing a glimpse of the future for all of us.

This is a pioneering scheme in Longwood which is trying to find the best way to make an office energy efficient with the hope of eventually making it carbon neutral.

But although Beehive owner Andy Aldridge is working with researchers from Leeds Metropolitan University to exhaustively test ways to use less energy, they realise there is still a long way to go.

Using less energy will be one of the biggest challenges to face people in the coming decades and although many – both householders and businesses – feel they are already doing their bit to save energy, help the planet and put a few more pounds back in their pockets through lower fuel bills, there is still a long way to go.

We are at the start of this new technology and it is trailblazing people like Andy who are leading the way and showing what is possible.

He has invested time, effort and not a little money into seeing just how far these new boundaries can be pushed. Andy is certainly taking things as far as he possibly can and has that mentality that he is never satisfied. It’s that determination for continuous improvement that turns the ordinary into the extraordinary.

The ideas they are trying now may seem a little far out, but in a few years they may be commonplace in our homes and businesses.