With his wife and two young children, Rumi Mohideen lives a refreshingly simple life on his narrowboat on the outskirts of Oxford. Their power is supplied mainly from solar panels and a wind turbine, so life on the boat is certainly low-impact.

The Mohideens, by choice, do not have a television or car, but they also have no mortgage, and minimal bills.

Neither are they isolated from society. His five-year-old son attends a local primary school, and Mr Mohideen runs his business, NL Sustainable Systems, from their floating abode they are even connected to the worldwide web.

Having lived this low-impact' life for more than ten years, Mr Mohideen firmly believes it is achievable, be it on a boat, in a business, or in a house.

He said: "It's all about trying to cut our energy use and carbon emissions to levels which are environmentally sustainable. This is what my business tries to help others to do, according to their individual energy needs, circumstances and desires."

Escaping from the rat-race after earning a degree in environmental resource management, Mr Mohideen set up an environmental resource management company, Natural Landscapes.

This has has since evolved into NL Sustainable Systems, and he concentrates on advising on and supplying energy-efficient products and renewable energy sources.

The company assesses clients' electrical energy use and gauges whether their property is suitable for renewable energy systems, such as solar panels and wind turbines.

Mr Mohideen, 40, said: "At the moment the main thrust of my business is in renewable energy. People are becoming more aware of climate change, and that there might be power shortages in the future.

"I get a lot of people, who work from home, who want a back-up system. They want the security of it, and there are other people who want to come off the national grid altogether. It's all deciding what's right for you."

He added: "If your home is already connected to the grid, and you have a south-facing pitch roof or a flat roof, and you are already careful about your consumption of electricity then fitting grid-connected solar panels will be beneficial.

"If your property or residence is off-grid, then solar panels should be fitted in conjunction with wind and water turbines, as appropriate, to power your needs."

There are so many possibilities, though, that it can become confusing, but this is at the core of what Mr Mohideen does.

He will come to you, assess your situation, and advise on what is best for your budget. Indeed, another fundamental aspect to the business is delivering all of this as cheaply as possible.

He said: "I have suppliers in Europe who hold items in stock. I order it and they ship it directly to the customer it's not as expensive as people think."

Dominated According to Mr Mohideen, two major factors in recent years have pushed the prices up.

First, oil companies have dominated the industry, and second, the Government has introduced the EST (Energy Saving Trust) grant system.

"This trust has virtually been a licence to print money for renewable energy technology suppliers and fitters, sometimes increasing the prices of solar energy by a factor of five or six times the normal price," he said.

"It is the taxpayer who is picking up the bill."

Ethical business practice means a lot to Mr Mohideen, and his company's policies reflect this.

He explained: "Companies should take responsibility for their actions and, where possible, we avoid knowingly purchasing from countries with oppressive regimes and which supply the defence industry.

"Food miles are important, but as little carbon as possible should be expended in getting the product from the factory to the consumer, which is why we operate as a renewable energy systems brokerage, not a shop.

"This also allows us to keep our prices down and operate on very narrow margins. Operating like this also means we have a minimal carbon footprint."

Looking ahead to the future, he firmly believes that in ten years' time, every south facing house will have solar panel water heating.

But is this a realistic assessment?

He said: "People are interested but they need incentives to change the habits of a lifetime.

"Unfortunately the culture is not here there is a lack of initiative and often when people look for information and help it's simply not there.

"We need the Government to lead this cultural change, it's not going to happen on its own."

Call 07985 927 725 or see www.sustainable-systems.co.uk