Can technological innovation really conserve energy?

Hello again, Earlier this term I had requested an essay, you wrote an extended summary of David Owen's New Yorker article "The Efficiency Dilemma."
In an essay of roughly 500 words responding to the content of the article. In your summary, you were expected to maintain a level of objectivity. In your response, you have an opportunity to express your own opinions.
In his article, Owen's primary focus is on how technological innovation that is meant to conserve energy use actually leads to more energy consumption and increased use of energy resources. In his synthesis, Owen's introduces the reader to the Jevons paradox and "rebound."
In your response, express your own opinion. Is this phenomenon real or imagined? Have you seen this phenomenon in your own experiences or observations? If so, please offer examples. What do you suppose is Owen's purpose for writing this article? Is he suggesting that it rests in our own laps to effect conservation of energy? Is he saying we're basically "damned if we do, damned if we don't?" Or something in between?
One of the reasons I shared this article with you is because I found it to be a serious wake-up call, especially in light of global warming/climate change, the future for succeeding generations, and the survival of the human race and our planet. While some insist on debating the truth of global warming/climate change, I rely on the best science, evidence, and my own short six decades of life on this planet to inform me that global warming/climate change is a serious concern and that human activity is largely responsible. Like most Americans, my thoughts turn to my wallet and my own self-interest. What really struck me was the amount of energy consumed that ultimately ends up in a landfill, or in food waste tossed into kitchen bags. After reading this article, I became very conscious of my household's food waste as well as my own personal behaviors, and I began to make changes in myself and in my community while trying to unwrap the conundrum of Jevons paradox.
My mother, God rest her soul, and I used to have an on-going line of banter. I'd ask her, "Why are you so pessimistic?" She would reply, "A pessimist is an informed optimist. We are you so optimistic, Evan?" My response: "An optimist is an informed pessimist, mom." She'd laugh and go back to reading her Bible. I'd laugh and go back to watching a Seattle Mariners game.
It's all in the reading.