Climate and Energy
Energy and Climate Change
While awareness of climate change has increased, political action at the international and national levels is still inadequate. The World Future Council continues to provide expert support to policymakers keen to introduce renewable energy legislation. We are intensifying efforts in India, the US (state and federal levels), Central and Eastern Europe and South Africa and launching new initiatives in Brazil, Chile and Mexico and in non-grid connected regions of Africa and India. Read more here.
benefitsA global transition to clean, green energy will mean:
- much less CO2 in the atmosphere, reducing climate chaos
- reduced pollution of our air,water and land
- greater energy security for communities and nations
- fewer conflicts and wars over energy resources
- affordable energy for everyone
- skilled jobs in cities and rural areas
- sustainable economies withstable fuel prices
security from violenceThe global demand for fossil fuels is increasing faster than expected. As the world's oil-, coal- and gashungry countries compete for depleting resources, there will be even more conflicts, wars and violations of human rights. Renewable fuels, available everywhere, eliminate scarcity as the cause of conflict, and reduce dependence on nations or corporations as fuel suppliers.
accessAny group's social and economic prosperity is linked to its access to electricity. We cannot end poverty without a sufficient energy supply for all humans. We need to conserve our existing energy resources through their efficient use and distribution, and rapidly build decentralized systems that produce energy where it is consumed. An energy transition needs to achieve "energy justice" - equal access to affordable, clean, renewable energy for all.
costsRenewable energy prices have been halved since 1990 and are expected to drop another 40% by 2020. Over time, the cost of renewable energy will continue to fall due to economies of scale and technological progress. The costs of fossil and nuclear energy, however, are expected to almost quadruple by 2050, as the world's supply of these fuels diminishes and the price of extraction, environmental protection and cleanup increase.
climate ProtectionWorldwide, a rapid shift to clean, decentralized, renewable energy will combine climate stabilization with energy independence. It will enable each of us to take meaningful action for the long-term well-being of our families, communities, and for our shared home, the Earth.
not ccsThe longterm answer to our energy needs is not CCS (Carbon Capture & Storage), a proposed plan to capture CO2 emissions from fossil fuels and indefinitely store these gases in cavities underground. This does not avoid, butrather hides, our CO2 waste, which could leak out in the future. CCS is too expensive, uncertain and potentially dangerous.
more than enoughRenewable energy is available everywhere on the planet as sunlight, wind, flowing water, the biomass of plants, and as heat stored in the ground. The sun's energy that falls on the Earth's land surfaces every day is 15,000 times the world's total daily energy use. The widespread abundance and diversity of renewable energy allows for its multiple, decentralized, affordable and efficient uses.
economic securityRenewable energy production will lessen a community's or nation's vulnerability to fossil fuel market prices. It will encourage self-reliant economic growth, and increase economic security.
equityA small part of the global population has been consuming the lion's share of the world's fossil fuels, and pumping most of the CO2 into our common atmosphere. But the poorest people on the planet, those who have burned little or no fossil fuels, suffer the most from climate chaos, struggling to survive its devastating effects. Clearly it is morally unacceptable that the environmental and social costs of our long history of burning fossil fuels be imposed on those least able to pay. The energy transition needs to be paid for by those who have benefited most from the current system.
stabilityCommunities that use locally produced renewable energy have more stable energy costs. Setting up renewable energy systems requires initial investment-but except for biomass, once installed, no fuel costs remain. Overall, energy costs become more predictable and controllable, increasing economic stability.
flexibilityGreen energy resources - sun, wind, water, geothermal and biomass - can be combined depending on their availability. They can provide heating, cooling, electricity, and fuel for machinery, vehicles and other transportation. Renewable technologies can be flexibly designed to fit the landscape, architecture, machines, and vehicles-increasing efficiency and autonomy.
not nuclear Nuclear power depends on limited uranium and produces hazardous wastes that remain radioactive for hundreds of thousands of years. The plutonium produced can be used to make nuclear weapons that will heighten our global insecurity. Nuclear plants need gigantic government subsidies and guarantees to investors. They could not be built fast enough for any real contribution to climate stabilization.
human securityThe natural disasters triggered by climate chaos are responsible for 150,000 deaths every year, and cause millions of people to seek refuge elsewhere. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) predicts 50 million "environmental refugees" by 2010, and 150 million by 2050. The tremendous costs of migration affect the refugees and the communities and nations that must manage their arrival and integration.
employmentSwitching to renewable energy is already increasing economic growth and the number of high-skilled jobs in engineering, manufacturing, agriculture, electronics and other fields. In Germany, the renewables sector created 234,000 jobs over the last 15 years, while the number of coal, nuclear, gas, and oil workers dropped from 223,000 to 94,500 in the same period.
independent action With the right policy support, each one of us can afford to switch to renewable energy, enabling all of us to be part of an energy renaissance. Many consumers can become producers of renewable energy and profitably share their surplus production with others.
not the last dropOverall, the solution cannot be to find and burn every last bit of oil, coal and gas on the planet. We know that this will only lead to a greater gap between the rich and poor and increase climate chaos, pollution and wars.
Cities and Climate Change
Cities are primary agents of climate change burning most of the world’s fossil fuels. But they are also its primary victims. Many have already suffered dramatic flooding. Policies designed to support sustainable urban living are now a priority for the World Future Council. It is clear that sustainable development requires sustainable urban development. Read more about it here.
Agriculture and Climate Change
Will the world’s last cohesive rain forests disappear to create arable land for growing biofuels to run our cars? Will the increasing price of bio-fuels cause a worldwide hunger crisis? The food crises in Haiti and other countries of the South in April 2008 have shown how explosive these issues are. The WFC's work on Agriculture and Climate Change tackles these and and other questions.
Networking for renewables: meeting the EU's renewable energy targets
Today’s fossil fuel and nuclear based energy system brings the resource to the power plant, but as the share of renewable energies increases, we will need to get used to the idea of taking the power plant to the resource. Much of the challenge of building a sustainable, geopolitically secure and cost effective energy system will fall on Europe’s aged and nationally focused electricity networks. We now need a fresh, forward looking approach.
