OP 2008 12 Renewable Energy

8/14/2019 OP 2008 12 Renewable Energy

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OUR PLANET GENERATiNG POwER, jObs ANd dEvELOPmENT1

OUR PLANETThe agaz ne o the Un te Nat on En ron ent Progra e -dece er 2008

RENEWABLEENERGY

Generating power, jobs and development


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2 OUR PLANET GENERATiNG POwER, jObs ANd dEvELOPmENT

Daniel M. Kammen, the Class o 1935Distinguished Pro essor o Energy in theEnergy and Resources Group, the GoldmanSchool o Public Policy, and the Departmento Nuclear Engineering at the University o Cali ornia, Berkeley...

... calls on the incoming U.S. presidentto launch a clean energy century.

innovation agenda- page 26

Martin Roscheisen, CEO o Nanosolar, Inc...

... describes a green business boom in SiliconValley and outlines what government must doto encourage and support such innovation.

green valley - page 24

Prof Ed Gallagher, Chairmano the UK Renewable FuelsAgency...

... describes how early enthusiasm or bio uelswaned, and charts a way orward.

making bio uels sustainable- page 18

Michael Liebreich, CEO o NewEnergy Finance...

... describes and explains the extraordinarysurge in investment in clean energy worldwide.

cleaning up - page 14

Matthias Machnig, Deputy EnvironmentMinister o Germany...

generating growth - page 4

... explains how his country'spolicies have lend to a dynamicexpansion o electricity generation

rom renewable energy,strengthening its climate strategy.

Lalita Ramdas, Board Chair ,Greenpeace International ...

enough is enough - page 22

... calls or a carbon- ree,nuclear- ree revolution.

Yingling Liu, China Program Manager at theWorldwatch Institute...

China's new path - page 10

... describes the extraordinarilyrapid growth o renewable energyin China and shows how it is anintensi ying orce behind thecountry's economic growth.

Shyam Saran, a ormer ForeignSecretary o India, who is nowthe Prime Ministers SpecialEnvoy or Climate Change...

... describes his country's commitment toexploiting solar energy's potential and calls ora global programme to realise it worldwide.

mission possible - page 8

Senator Liz Thompson, a ormer Minister o Energy and Environment o Barbados...

regaining paradise - page 16

... describes the urgent need orrenewable energy in Small Island

Developing States and calls on theinternational community to helpprovide it.

OURPLANET

al o

page 3 re ect onpage 7 pro uctpage 12 peoplepage 13 a ar an e entpage 20 er at an nu erpage 21 ookpage 29

Our Planet , the agaz ne o theUn te Nat on En ron ent Progra e (UNEP)PO box 30552Na ro , KenyaTel: (254 20)7621 234Fax: (254 20)7623 927e- a l: uneppu @unep.org

To e current an pa t ue o thpu l cat on onl ne, plea e t

.unep.org/ourplanet

issN 101 - 7394

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The content o th agaz ne o not nece ar lyre ect the e or pol c e o UNEP or thee tor , nor are they an o c al recor . The

e gnat on e ploye an the pre entat ono not ply the expre on o any op n onhat oe er on the part o UNEP concern ng the

legal tatu o any country, terr tory or c ty or tauthor ty or concern ng the el tat on o t

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* All ollar ($) a ount re er to Us ollar .

Australian actor Cate Blanchett ...

sunshine and light showers - page 30

... is pioneering

"greenovation" athome and work.


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reflections by Achim Steiner,U.N. Under-Secretary-General andExecutive Director, UNEP

UNEP pro ote

en ron entally oun pract ceglo ally an n t o n act t e .Th agaz ne pr nte on 100% recycle

paper, u ng egeta le - a e nk an othereco- r en ly pract ce . Our tr ut on pol cy

a to re uce UNEP car on ootpr nt.

A chill wind has blown through international stock markets, and renewableenergy companies have not been immune. A global index o solar stocks, the

Claymore/MAC index, ell by over 50 per cent between April when it startedtrading and early November, while the New Energy Global InnovationIndex ell by a huge 45 per cent in October alone.

Some have drawn parallels with the dot.com bubble when Internet start-upcompanies, based on marketing rather than real markets, came and wentlike may ies. But this ignores hard and ast undamentals that should makerenewable energy companies ar more robust and lasting.

The main driving orce, climate change unlike the stock markets has steadily grown, not waxed and waned. Scientists studying ice coresin Antarctica estimate that greenhouse gases are now at their highestconcentration or 800,000 years.

Serious long-term government commitments are emerging, partly as a resulto the Kyoto Protocol and in anticipation o deeper and more comprehensivedeal in Copenhagen in 2009. The European Union wants to generate 20per cent o its energy rom renewable sources by 2020, up rom just over6 per cent in 2005. British Prime Minister Gordon Brown has announced abig expansion o wind power 7,000 turbines on- and o -shore. The U.S.government recently passed the Production Tax Credit and Investment Tax

Credit, extending support or wind power by a year and or geothermal andsolar power by two and eight respectively. And in the run-up to the elections,President-elect Obama pledged to invest $150 billion in clean energy overthe next 10 years, generating ve million jobs.

Meanwhile Clean Development Mechanism projects, now numbering overthree thousand, appear una ected by the nancial crisis: new resources arebeing ound and exploited daily, it seems. Countries like Mali and Madagascar,once outside the mechanism, are now accessing it, partly as a result o UN-linked capacity building. And renewables remain the astest, most cost-e ective and most environmentally riendly solution or many o the twobillion people still without access to modern energy.

A recent survey in Ghana part o UNEP and the Global EnvironmentFacilitys Solar and Wind Energy Resource Assessment has ound 100square kilometres o good windy land able to generate 500 megawatts o electricity or 10 per cent o the countrys needs. And a consortium including

a Dutch multinational, the German Wind Energy Institute and local investorsare planning a 300 megawatts wind arm in Turkana, northern Kenya.Renewable energy companies are no longer small start-ups. Suntech Power,headquartered in Wuxi, China the worlds biggest solar manu acturer has a market capitalization o $3.5 billion; First Solar in the United States hasone o $11.3 billion.

The economic models o the 20th century are now hitting the limits o whatis possible both in terms o our ecological ootprint and in deliveringbetter livelihoods or the 2.6 billion people still living on less than $2 a day.Investments will soon be pouring back into the global economy. Will theygo into yesterdays old, extractive, short-term economy or into a new GreenEconomy that will deal with todays challenges and generate countless

economic opportunities or poor and well-o alike? Renewable energygenerates three to ve times more jobs than ossil uel generation and itsecological ootprint is in nitely smaller.

This edition o Our Planet marks the climate convention meeting in Poznan,which must be central to the transition to a low carbon, green energyeconomy. Strategies or long-term cooperative action on climate changemust be eshed out alongside the nancial architecture needed to boostinvestments in renewables and other sectors. Directing the multi-billionstimulus packages being lined up by governments, allied to a reshaping andre ocusing o global markets, can assist success.

However the biggest stimulus package o all which could set the stage orsustainable growth in the 21st century must come in Copenhagen nextyear. I the international community can make this a big deal in every sense o the word, we will be a long way to a Global Green New Deal that will meet thegenuine development needs o 6.7 rising to 9 billion people.

Co er photo AdRiAN wiLsON / beate ork / Cor . 'Ne Green deal' the phra e on the l p o orl lee e o the dece er 2008 cl ate change negot at on n Poznan, Polan . w th econo e n tur o l aroun theglo al ar ng fr ly n talle at the top o the nternat onal pol t cal agen a, the e elop ent o rene a le anenergy opt on look l ke a cla c ' n- n- n' tuat on: cur ng greenhou e ga e on , a re no er energy ecur ty, an pro ng ne e ploy ent opportun t e or ll on . Th ue o Our Planet expla n ho .


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When senior German executives were asked by a major economics newspaperto name the business with the greatest uture potential, three quarters citedrenewable energy. In the past two years, or example, 15 new solar module

actories have gone into operation or been under construction in Germany representing an investment o around 1 billion Euros. Meanwhile, at the newAlpha Ventus test site in the North Sea, German manu acturers are developingtechnologies to advance o shore wind energy use and are demonstratingthe suitability o large-scale 5 megawatt wind turbines, which can also makeimportant uture contributions onshore.

All these are signs o the ourishing, innovation- riendly and dynamicallygrowing renewable energy technology sector. It owes its current standing to a

ar-sighted energy policy which, in view o globally rising demand, is the bestinsurance against limited resources, climate threats and supply shortages.

Good renewable energy policy is characterised by reliability, consistency,exibility, credibility and transparency criteria the German Government

is committed to meeting. As early as 1991 17 years ago the ElectricityFeed Act was established as one o the rst systematic support instruments

or renewable electricity. In 2000, the Renewable Energy Sources Act (EEG)ollowed; it distinguishes between the di erent sources and was recently

evaluated and improved.

M

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generatinggrowth

by Matthias Machnig


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Innovation also means thinking about how we can best integrate renewablesources' rapidly growing share into the electricity system. We have netuned the eed-in management system that comes into play when there arebottlenecks in the grid. We are also developing di erent incentives to ensurethat renewable energies not only provide electrical energy but can also takeon other unctions, such as voltage and requency control and reactive powercompensation or involvement in the balancing energy market. Storage, load

management and the precise optimisation o the electricity grid in rastructureare also important. Progress in in ormation and communication technologiesnow allows us to interconnect many decentralised generators and loads in avirtual combination power plant whose technical properties are equal to aconventional large-scale power plant. We will intensi y our support or thisdevelopment to ensure that, in the long-term, modern renewable energysources become the majority share o electricity supply.

Currently, the higher costs or renewable energies are paid by electricityconsumers. In 2007 the additional purchase costs amounted to 4.3 billioneuro which, or an average German household, means additional costs o

around 3 Euros per month. Even though these costs are set to rise moderatelyover the next couple o years during the continued expansion, renewableenergies will be more cost-e ective than conventional energy sources inaround 10 years time. Then Germany will reap the rewards o its groundwork and bene t rom annually increasing savings.

Our domestic economy is already pro ting. The Euros invested reduce importdependency; renewable electricity gives us protection rom ossil uel priceswhich will continue to rise; and eco-power plants curb electricity prices on thestock exchange. We are, moreover, creating a avourable climate or a sectorwhich had a total turnover o nearly 25 billion Euros in 2007, securing around250,000 jobs particularly in regions o eastern Germany most a ected bystructural change.

In a nutshell: climate protection is the most intelligent orm o economicpolicy. It initially costs money, but ultimately leads to a genuine vorsprungdurch technik (head start through technology). The export market is gainingin importance, as many countries adopt ambitious expansion targets orrenewable energies; the German wind sector's export quota now stands at70 per cent. Although investments in new wind turbines in Germany have

allen, the companies which operate internationally have seen an increase in

turnover thanks to the " rst mover advantage".

The EEG can only be one component o our policy or the uture. The IntegratedEnergy and Climate Programme, which we have developed in recent monthsand which, to a large extent, has already been legally implemented, comprises29 measures: the new EEG; support programmes or heat rom renewableenergies; underground cabling to accelerate grid expansion and morestringent insulation stringent standards in buildings being just a ew. We willstrengthen electricity generation rom climate- riendly combined heat andpower plants and double our energy productivity by 2020, clearly showingthat we are ocusing on energy e ciency alongside renewables. With thesetwo closely interlinked strategic elements we will continue along our chosenpath to protect the climate.

The EEG started a rapid development o renewable electricity generation,particularly rom wind, solar and biomass energy sources. Within just 10 yearsits share o gross electricity consumption has almost tripled rom around 5 toover 14 per cent. We have thus already ar exceeded the 12.5 per cent targetset by the European Commission or Germany or 2010.

Renewable energies have long ceased to be a niche product and are now a

mainstay o the electricity industry. They also play a substantial role in othersectors, satis ying 6.6 per cent o our demand or heat and 7.6 per cent o ourdemand or uel. We must continue on this success ul course, or our goal isextremely ambitious. We aim to generate at least 30 per cent o our electricity

rom renewable sources in 2020, and to continue this growth: a ter 2030, theyshould account or more than hal Germany's electricity supply.

This growth has a positive e ect in combating climate change. In 2007,renewables in Germany saved over 115 million tonnes o CO 2 emissions romelectricity generation, heat supply and transport. The EEG itsel contributedsavings o 57 million tonnes. This equals more than 7 per cent o Germany's

emissions and amounts to 13 million tonnes more than in the previous year.We will increase this gure. In 2020 the EEG alone will save over 100 milliontonnes o CO2 emissions. The eed-in system or electricity rom renewableenergies is the only German policy instrument that can bring about suchhuge reductions in climate-damaging emissions. It is irreplaceable i we areto achieve a 40 per cent reduction in our total greenhouse gas emissions by2020 over 1990 levels.

The EEG's recipe or success has our ingredients: guaranteed connection o all renewable energy installations to the electricity grid; priority purchaseand distribution o the electricity they generate; xed eed-in tari s or thedi erent types o renewables, generally laid down or 20 years; and, notleast, the long-term, clear and reliable target or renewable energies' shareo electricity consumption which we have just raised rom at least 20 to atleast 30 per cent by 2020. Installers and manu acturers o renewable energytechnologies con rm that the planning and investment security created bythe EEG plays a major part in its success. Fixed eed-in tari s carry a low risk,giving them an advantage over quota provisions combined with tradablecerti cates. This creates the conditions which enable investors to build new

actories and power plants, or installation manu acturers to conduct intensiveresearch and development and or banks to o er low-interest credits.

The European Commission con rmed this again in January 2008 when,comparing support instruments or renewable energies, it concluded thatwell-adapted eed-in regimes like the EEG are generally the most e cientand e ective o them. So it is no wonder that Germany exports the EEG aswell as wind turbines and solar modules: around 50 countries worldwide nowhave a similar system o eed-in tari s.

Importantly, the Act was not intended to be a static set o provisions, butwas aimed at encouraging innovations through sophisticated mechanisms todrive renewables rapidly up the economic learning curve. Degression rates,bonuses or especially innovative technologies and a regular review o theAct ensure its present and uture e ectiveness.


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The Re: Fa h on A ar are the orl fr t eth cala h on a ar . Pre ente n Lon on on 13 No e er,

the t el e a ar cele rate oc al an en ron entalpro e ent n reta l, anu acture an con u er

engage ent. Categor e nclu e Reta ler o the Year, theCotton A ar an the A r ca A ar .

in a gn that u ta na le a h on no longer the o a no he p- ear ng ra cal , the gl tzy e ent roughttogether cene ter l ke P x e Gel o an Oz al boatengan eature a h on y lea ng e gner , nclu ng

v enne we t oo .

The En ron ent A ar entto ve a a French co panythat pro uce neaker through

all pro ucer n braz l ort p oneer ng ork replac ng

tra t onal cotton y organ ccotton, upport ng l latexpro uct on n A azon a to fght

aga n t e ore tat on,an u ng ecolog calleather n tea o chro e tanne leather.

Pachacut , on oththe bu ne A aran the People A ar .A Fa rtra e a h on

co pany, t pro uce a range o goo ro alpacakn t ear to Pana a hat that a to pro e the l e

o An ean pro ucer .

An the Cotton A ar ent to Pant to Po erty, anorgan zat on that ell organ c un er ear through

eth cal an n epen ent hop to ra e oney or themake Po erty H tory ca pa gn.

.re a h ona ar .org

productsEth cal ash on Elect c scoote

Help ng e ugees Sola concent ato

we coul oon collect olar energy through our n o . Re earcher at thema achu ett in t tute o Technology ha e e elope a l ght-a or ng yethat, hen pa nte on a n o , tran er energy a the gla nto olar cellat the n o e ge . The c ent t oun a 30 per cent h gher per or ance

th the co ne y te o l ght-a or ng ye an olar panel co pareto a tan -alone olar cell. Ult ately, they th nk th approach ll allo uto nearly ou le the per or ance o ex t ng olar cell or n al a e

co t. The olar concentratorcoul e arkete th n three year .

http:// .guar an.co.uk/en ron ent/2008/ ul/10/ olarpo er.rene a leenergy

Wate w se

in the e ay o rought an glo alar ng, t e er ore cruc al to top

nee le ly a t ng ater. One olut on the venu , a ept c y te that take yourhou ehol ater nclu ng e age an clean t up o that t can e u e or yar

rr gat on. Th ake the venu e gney dan h co pany b oku e uch ore

e c ent than or nary tank , h ch ettleol out a heer gra ty. The venu put

the ater through e eral e ranehou ng acter a, ak ng t clean enough togo tra ght nto your o l.

. oku e.co.ukNo u e , no no e, no e on anno t to the ga tat on theCh ne e- u lt Ego street scoota a100 per cent electr c cooter that can

e charge u ng the a n electr c tyupply. The ke ha a 30-to 40- le

range an a top pee o 30 ph not a con er ng t only co t aroune ght pence or an e ght-hour charge.Coul th e the an er to h gh uelpr ce , conge t on an , ult ately,glo al ar ng?

http:// .fre ox.co /pro uct/2166/Ego-Electr c-street-scoota

Sola -powe ed ad o

The orl fr t olar-po ere g talra o, launche y br t h co pany Ro ert ,cap tal ze on olar energy h le a o ngthe en ron ental courge o atter e no

ean eat g en that the U.K., or exa ple,con u e aroun 30,000 tonne o porta le

atter e e ery year. The ra o pro e up to27 hour o l ten ng a ay ro unl ght.

http:// . ggreen le.co /pro uct /ro ert - olar-po ere - a -ra o/r ol a .

a px?pro uct =r ol a

The Ga a A oc at on on an A h en A ar earl er th year or t orkpro ng ethanol- uelle to e to aroun 1,800 a l e n ea ternEth op a Ke r eyah re ugee ca p. so e 17,000 people l e n the ca p,ha ng e con ct n ne gh our ng so al a an they rely on uel oo

or cook ng. The Ga a A oc at on pro ect help ng to pre ent then cr nate oo u e h ch ha contr ute to exten e e ore tat onn the area, a ell a greatly pro ng the re ugee l ng con t on . The

ethanol pro uce ro locally-a a la le ola e , a ugar y-pro ucth ch pre ou ly cau e pollut on.

.g ep nternat onal.org


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by Shyam Saran

missionpossible

8 OUR PLANET GENERATiNG POwER, jObs ANd dEvELOPmENTs


9/32

The Sun has longbeen recognized as

the primal source o all energy on Earth.

In an ancient civilization likeIndia's, it has been worshipped

as a god who bestows li e-sustaining heat and light to all livingbeings. Sunlight is locked up as usable

energy in ossil uels and carbon, but theseare nite and are being rapidly depleted.

Yet the Suns direct energy is inexhaustible andconstantly renewable. The energy in sunlight that

reaches our earth in just 40 minutes is equivalent to currentglobal energy consumption or a year and what is more, solar

energy in itsel is totally ree.

India has signi cant advantages it can leverage in promoting solar energy asan alternative and renewable energy source. Firstly, the intensity and durationo sunlight available on its landmass is relatively greater than in many otherheavily populated regions o the world. Just 1 per cent o Indias land area canmeet its entire electricity requirements up to 2030. Secondly, the country'svery size permits a rapid build-up o capacity to levels that can allow signi canteconomies o scale.

Another actor adds to the attractiveness o solar power, even at currenttechnological levels. Indias peaking power requirements during the

daytime hours provide a virtually precise t to the availability o solar powerthrough photovoltaics.

The Prime Minister o India launched the country's rst National Action Planon Climate Change on 30 June this year. Among the eight National Missionswhich orm the substantive content o the Plan, the National Solar Missionhas been given pride o place. This ts in very well with the Plan's basic thrust,which is to bring about a strategic shi t rom Indias reliance on ossil uels andconventional sources o energy to a progressively greater use o renewablesources o energy. This would serve the country's quest or energy security aswell as help meet the challenge o climate change.

India is now in the process o elaborating its National Solar Mission into anambitious but actionable project. We are looking at what could be realistictargets or the year 2020, and or 2050, given both the advantages we possess

and the constraints we ace. Di erent currently available technologies, such assolar photovoltaic and solar thermal, are being evaluated or their suitabilityin di erent applications. A regulatory and incentive ramework is beingevolved to provide a predictable and e cient policy ramework that could,with a modest investment, trigger large-scale development o solar energy. The objective is to use any government support whether in the orm o

capital subsidy or eed-in-tari as a temporary and declining charge ongovernment, so that the industry becomes viable as quickly as possible. Weare studying the experience o other countries which have initiated similarplans to promote solar energy and are exploring opportunities or mutuallybene cial collaboration with several partner countries.

India wishes to become the leading solar nation o the world, in terms botho the scale o its application and o ocussed research and development(R&D) work. Our objective is to promote technological innovations andimprovements in existing technologies. This would bring costs down andincrease e ciency. At the same time, we are trying to create a well- unded R&Dnetwork that could explore cuttingedge technologies with a view to makingsolar applications as user- riendly and convenient as possible. The ocus willbe on cost-e ective, environmentally riendly storage technologies, whichwould enable solar power to be stored and used as and when required.

India has a very comprehensive science and technology network and asigni cant number o world class research institutions that could be mobilized

or this. Nevertheless, the ambitious nature o the programme we envisagewould also require a plan or building human capacity. This, too, is beingprepared as part o the National Solar Mission.

India believes that the promotion o renewable energy particularly solarenergy could play a signi cant, and perhaps even decisive, role in meetingthe challenge o climate change. Its merit lies in the accompanying bene tthat it also advances energy security. We need a truly collaborative e ort,publicly unded, on a global scale, to accelerate the di usion o existing solartechnologies. We also need to explore technological innovations aimed atachieving more radical solutions, especially in solar energy storage.

The current economic and nancial crisis has demonstrated the willingness o countries to inject billions o dollars o public unds to rescue their economies.

A modest part o these public unds could also be mobilized to und a globalcampaign to promote solar energy. This would create new industries, new jobsand encourage technological innovation. It could become part o the solutionto the economic crisis, and not, as it currently appears, its casualty.

B i l l R

o s s / C or b i s

OUR PLANET GENERATiNG POwER, jObs ANd dEvELOPmENTs9


10/32

China'snew pathby Yingling Liu

C h r i s t

i a n

M i c h a e

l s / G e t t y

I m a g e s

China is at an energy crossroads. The dominance o coal in its energy structure and the countrys avid search or new energy sources around the globe have heightened concerns over energy security and environmental andeconomic sustainability, not to speak o Chinas contribution to the globalclimate challenge. As its energy consumption rises, never has it been sourgent or China to nd clean energy alternatives and expand their share inthe total energy mix

Indeed, this is happening on the ground. A combination o governmentpolicies and the market has recently driven a renewable energy boom in China.It shows how state policies can encourage and sustain the development andexpansion o industries or a new market niche, and how market orces caninject vitality into the private sector and thus greatly hasten the achievemento policy goals. This mutual rein orcement between policies and the market islikely to prove the most lasting and pro ound orce in pushing China towardsa new energy path.

Chinas landmark renewable energy law passed in 2005 and cominginto e ect at the start o 2006 has been the most decisive policy tool.It requires the government to ormulate development targets, strategic

plans, and nancial guarantee measures or renewable energy, and providespre erential guidance on cost sharing rameworks, grid accessibility andpricing mechanisms. The law, together with a series o implementationregulations, has caused the immediate take-o o several renewable energy

industries such as wind, solar photovoltaic (PV) and biomass, and rein orcedthe expansion o others, including hydropower and solar hot water.

Wind power has recently been the astest growing renewable energy source. The law gave the long-dormant industry a jumpstart, and the unexpectedlyenthusiastic response rom the market caused policy makers to hasten toraise its short- and mid-term targets. Additional installed capacity grew byover 60 per cent in 2005, and more than doubled in both 2006 and 2007.By the end o 2007, cumulative capacity had reached roughly 6 GW up

rom just 0.8 GW in 2004 ranking China th among all the world's nationsor wind installations. Cumulative installations in 2007 exceeded the target

set or 2010 just one year ago, and the 2020 target o 30 GW is expected to bereached by 2012, eight years ahead o schedule.

Chinas solar PV industry has also seen phenomenal development.Surging worldwide demand particularly rom Europe and the U.S. hasencouraged the development o a world-class solar PV manu acture basein China, literally rom scratch. The country's total solar cell production jumped rom less than 100 MW in 2005 to 1,088 MW in 2007, making it theworld's top producer. Chinese experts and business leaders believe that

production will exceed 5 GW by 2010, accounting or a third o the world total,and reaching 10 GW by 2015. Though the lions share o Chinas productionis or overseas markets, the country is unquestionably turning into a majorglobal solar PV base.



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Biomass energy is starting to shi t rom traditional burning in rural homesto commercialized industrial-scale power generation. China has prioritizedthis since the energy law took e ect. Mainly using waste rom the agricultureand orestry sectors, installed capacity is projected to increase rom2 GW in 2005 to 30 GW by 2020, providing a growing share o the countrysgreen electricity.

The recent policy tools have also consolidated and advanced traditionalrenewable energy industries, including hydropower and solar thermalpanels, where China has already been a world leader. The technologies arecomparatively simple and low-cost, and the country has developed airlystrong construction, manu acturing and installation industries or bothsources. They are still dominant in Chinas renewable energy use, and areexpected to see continuous strong growth.

Hydropower accounts or about two-thirds o Chinas current renewableenergy use. It has grown by over 8 per cent annually rom 2002 to 2006,and installed capacity will reach 190 GW by 2010 and 300 GW by 2020. Chinaalso has nearly two-thirds o the world's solar hot water capacity: more thanone in every ten households bathe in water heated by the sun. Such solar

thermal has witnessed 20-25 per cent annual growth in recent years, withinstalled capacity rising rom 35 million square metres in 2000 to 100 millionsquare metres by the end o 2006. The government aims or 150 millionsquare metres by 2010 and double that gure by 2020. A more optimistic

prediction envisages 800 million square metres installed capacity by 2030,which would mean that more than hal o all Chinese households would beusing solar energy or water heating.

Renewable energy has become a strategic industry in China. The countryhas more than 50 domestic wind turbine manu acturers, over 15 major solarcell manu acturers and roughly 50 companies constructing, expandingor planning or polysilicon production lines, the key components or solarPV systems. Those two industries together employ some 80,000 people. The country also has thousands o hydropower manu acturers andengineering and design rms. More than a thousand solar water heatermanu acturers throughout the country and associated design, installationand service providers provide some 600,000 jobs. As renewable industriesare scaled up, costs will come down, enabling aster and wider utilization,and private industry will have an increased stake in lobbying or a biggershare o the domestic market.

China currently gets 7.5 per cent o its primary energy rom renewableenergy sources. The government aims to expand that to 15 per cent by 2020.Yet development in the marketplace shows that this target could well be

exceeded, and that its share will keep rising beyond 2020. The takeo andstrong advancement o renewable energy in China is signi cant not just ingreen powering o Chinas uture economic growth, but in providing hope orenvironmental well-being worldwide.



12/32

Follo ng the h tor c U.s. elect on on 4

No e er, all eye are on Pre ent-electBArACk OBAMAto ee hat changehe ll r ng hen he take o ce njanuary. Ne o senator O a a ctory

rought congratulat on ro a ar ety o en ron ental t an lea er aroun the

orl . Y o e boer, Execut e secretary o the UNFCCC, h ch ta ke th ork ngto ar an nclu e, co prehen e anrat fa le eal at the cruc al cl ate talk

che ule or dece er 2009, a hea " ery encourage " y barack O a a'tance on glo al ar ng. Ger an Fore gn

m n ter Frank-walter ste n e er a the

orl ha to ork ore clo ely togetheron the en ron ent to create a "Ne Greendeal" a ter O a a elect on ctory, h leCana a Pr e m n ter stephen Harper

a he hope to ork th the Pre ent-elect on a North A er can eal or cur nggreenhou e ga e on l nke to glo al

ar ng. Accor ng to h ca pa gntate ent , the nco ng Pre ent ll

ra cally epart ro current U.s. cl atean energy pol c e to create a green energyecono y an ake the U.s. a lea er oncl ate change. Propo al nclu e ett nga goal o re uc ng U.s. e on to 1990le el y 2020 an y 80 per cent y 2050,u ng a cap-an -tra e y te . Nor oul he

a t or e erg ng n u tr al g ant uch aCh na an in a to act, though he ay n t

they u t not e ar eh n n ak ng the ro n n ng co t ent . Other propo alnclu e a 10-year clean energy progra e

orth 150 ll on ollar nclu ng a target

o 10 per cent o electr c ty ro rene a leource y 2012, an 25 percent y 2025 h ch en age to create 5 ll onne o .

Another lan ark elect on on the other eo the glo e aMOHAMED NASHEED atta n the pre ency o the mal e .A ong h fr t pronounce ent a the

ntent on to e ta l h a o ere gn ealthun ro tour t nco e to uy lan o the

300,000 nha tant o the 1,200 lanan coral atoll that or the mal ecan fn ne ho e n the ace o r ng

ea le el . we o not ant to lea e themal e , ut e al o o not ant to ecl ate re ugee l ng n tent or eca e ,

he a . we can o noth ng to top cl atechange on our o n an o e ha e to uylan el e here. it an n urance pol cy orthe or t po le outco e. w th o to the mal e no ore than 1.5 etrea o e ea le el, that outco e a t nct

po l ty. Potent al te un er cu onor relocat on nclu e in a an sr Lanka,h ch ha e lar culture , cu ne an

cl ate , or Au tral a.

The A ghan pro nce o ba yan ach e eglo al na e recogn t on n 2001 hen t oworl Her tage-l te bu h t culpturehe n ro a an tone cl ace ere

e troye y the Tal an go ern ent.se en year on, the pro nce et to ark aore po t e note th the e ta l h ent

o the country fr t nat onal park, ban -eA r, h ch enco pa e f e pectacularlake n the H n u Ku h. Lea ng the

n t at e to protect the country rag lenatural re ource an create en ron entala arene A ghan tan fr t e alego ernor,HABiBA SArABi, appo nte

y Pre ent Ha Karza n 2005.Ha ng pre ou ly er e a m n ter o wo en' A a r an m n ter o Culturean E ucat on, sara hope that tourcan help oo t the e elop ent o one o A ghan tan poore t pro nce .

To callT. BOONE PiCkENSol oule an un er tate ent. The ll ona re o l

tycoon-turne -en ron ental t ha a ea e n the U.s. y announc ng that he

ll n e t h u tant al o l ortune n npo er. "don't get the ea that i' e turnegreen. my u ne ak ng oney an i

th nk th go ng to ake a lot o oney,"he eclare . P cken recently or ere 667tur ne ro General Electr c, the fr t atch

o ore than 2,000 he plan or the orl

gge t n ar n Texa . when co plthe $10 ll on pro ect houl pro u4,000 ega att o po er a out the

a e a a coal-fre po er tat on thatoul pro e 7 per cent o the electre an o a country uch a the U.K. dur

the U.s. elect on ca pa gn, P cken ta la plan h ch call or A er ca to pro u20 per cent o t electr c ty ro rene a

tch t auto eet to natural ga anexpan o hore r ll ng. "i' e een an

an all y l e, ut th one e ergee can't r ll our ay out o ," ay th

e er-quota le Oklaho an.

A er can act tANNiE LEONArDa pa onate ca pa gner aga n t tha ur ty o a te. in 2007, ore tha3 ll on people aroun the orl atcheher ral ocu entary 'The story o stu

h ch ocu ent the l e-cycle o o

pro uct . w th hu our an clar ty, the flexpla n here all our tu co e ro

hat re ource are u e to create t, hol e are a ecte ur ng t pro uctan hat happen to t hen e car

t. Leonar ha pent the la t 20 yeara ng a arene o en ron enhealth an u t ce ue he coor nator o the Glo al All ance inc nerator Alternat e , er e on

oar o the internat onal Foru o

Glo al zat on an the En ron entHealth Fun , an ha pre ou ly orkeGreenpeace internat onal.

people

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awards and eventsin july 2007, L e Earth a e h tory th a e en-cont nent, 24-hour u cextra aganza tretch ng ro Ne York to sy ney an johanne urg that roughtogether act l ke The Pol ce, Gene , ma onna an Kanye we t. Organ zer AGore 2008 ollo -up L e Earth in a on 7 dece er n mu a . The con

ll eature jon bon jo an bolly oo legen A ta h bachchan to ra e clchange a arene . The organ zer ho nclu e Ra en ra Pachaur , the chao the intergo ern ental Panel on Cl ate Change ay the e ent ll pro eplat or o in a can cont nue t glo al cl ate lea er h p. The e ent ll pro ect , nclu ng the L ght A b ll on L e ca pa gn an Cl ate Pro ec

e cate to pro ot ng a arene an fn ng olut on to cl ate change halle at ng po erty.

http://l eearth.org/

For 2009, UNEP Cha p on o the Earth a ar are e ng reca t to enco paour ne categor e : en ron ental pol cy, u ne , c l oc ety an c ence an

technology. The ne categor e h ch replace the a ar pre ou reg onal

e pha h ghl ght the urgency o cooperat on et een all player an allector o oc ety to ach e e a glo al Green Econo y. The a ar ll go totran or at onal lea er aroun the glo e: they ay e pol t c an , c c fgure oryouth lea er , an can range ro u c an to econo t . The a ar cere ony

ll once aga n take place n parallel th the annual Glo al bu ne su t orthe En ron ent (b4E), co-ho te y UNEP an the U.N. Glo al Co pact, n Par ,France, n Apr l 2009.

http:// .unep.org/cha p on /

22 septe er a the la t ay n 2008 on h ch

the orl 6.7 ll on people ere l ng nalance th the planet ocapac ty. Th

accor ng to the Glo al Footpr nt Net ork, agroup that a to ra attent on to e t atethat people are con u ng 40 per cent orere ource than the planet can currentlyreplen h. The la t ull year hen hu an ty a

ee e to e l ng n re ource equ l r u a1985, hen the glo al populat on a aroun4.8 ll on. s nce then, Earth O er hoot day haco e tea ly earl er each year n 2007, t a

et at Octo er 6.

. ootpr ntnet ork.org

The Con ent on on the Con er at on o m gratory spec eha eclare 2009 the Year o the Gor lla. Three o the

our gor lla u pec e are l te a cr t cally en angere n the Re L t pu l he y the internat onal Un on or

the Con er at on o Nature (iUCN). Partner n the Yearo the Gor lla ca pa gn nclu e the Great Ape sur alPartner h p un er UNEP an UNEsCO an the worlA oc at on o Zoo an Aquar u . The o ect e o the

Year to upport c ent fc re earch an con er at onact on or gor lla , nclu ng un ng tra n ng o tra ner ,

e elop alternat e ource o nco e uch a ecotour ,an oo t e ucat on an a arene .

.yog2009.org

UNEPGove n ng Counc l

L ve Ea th ind a

Ea th Ove shoot Day

2009 Yea o the Go lla

Champ ons o the Ea thand B4E

The UNEP Go ern ng Counc l an Glo al m n ter alEn ron ent Foru , 1620 Fe ruary 2009, Na ro ,Kenya, ll cu UNEP ork an the late ten ron ental ue . The t o a n the e o the

eet ng ll e Glo al zat on an the En ron ent Glo al Cr e : Nat onal Chao ? an internat onalEn ron ental Go ernance an Un te Nat onRe or . m n ter ll cu or ally an

n or ally the nter ent on nece ary to create agreen econo y. The eet ng ll al o e atten e

y U.N. hea , an tra e un on, c l oc ety anu ne lea er .

.unep.org

The Pr x P ctet a a or ne glo al photography pr ze that ocu e on u ta na l ty, re ar ng photage they u e to tell tor e o urgent glo al gn fcance. The naugural pr ze a g en to Cana an

beno t Aqu n or h er e on e ert fcat on n Ch na ent tle The Ch ne e du t bo l. mr Aqu n re

Octo er ro or er U.N. secretary-General Kof Annan, ho a he hope the pr ze ll help to eepen uo the change tak ng place n our orl an ra e pu l c a arene a out the urgency o tak ng pre ent

.pr xp ctet.co

P x P ctet



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cleaning upby Michael Liebreich



15/32

indeed, have really shown their intent to become clean energy powerhouses.

A ew years ago, sustainable energy investment in China owed mainly intomanu acturing expansion, but the publicity surrounding the Beijing OlympicGames sharpened the countrys political resolve and boosted programmesto promote cleaner power. By 2007, investment in sustainable generationcapacity excluding large hydro projects such as the Three Gorges dam soared to $10.8 billion. And India is home to one o the worlds most success ulwind turbine producers, Suzlon.

True, renewable energy would not be competitive on a stand-alone basis withcoal- red power. But three things are working to level the playing eld. First,carbon prices are increasing the cost o dirty power as can be seen by thenumber o coal- red plants being struck o the drawing boards in the U.S.and Europe. Second, renewable energy is becoming cheaper as technologiesincrease in scale and operating experience (although this trend has beenobscured recently by surging commodity prices and supply chain bottlenecks,there is no doubt it is still power ully at work). Third, an increasingly robustweb o policy is being woven into place to support clean energy around theworld whether in the orm o research grants, accelerated depreciationallowances, eed-in tari s, renewable port olio standards or green certi cates. The ossil uel industry may complain about this support or clean energy,but it has had a ree pass to dump its efuent in the air or too long. We

pay to treat our sewage, even though it would be cheaper to discard it inour streets and rivers; we now have to take the same approach to protectour atmosphere.

The sustainable energy sector has not been immune to the turmoil on theworlds nancial markets. The impact o the credit crisis started to makeitsel elt in early 2008, with stock prices alling nearly 20 per cent. Sincethen, however, investors seem to have regained their nerve. During the

rst hal o 2008, total investment was only slightly lower than the yearbe ore. Asset nance also slowed as credit became more expensive. Thepublic markets saw a very quiet rst quarter this year. But other investment

categories have taken up the slack: venture capital and private-equityinvestment logged a record quarter in the subsequent three months ascompanies completed private rounds rather than brave the turbulentpublic markets.

Indeed the industrys resilience in the ace o the current capital marketconditions bodes extremely well or the uture. Investment in sustainableenergy must continue to grow strongly i we are to meet the ambitioustargets or greenhouse gas reductions outlined by the 2007 G8 summitat Heiligendamm. At New Energy Finance, we expect investment inclean energy to reach $450 billion annually by 2012, rising to more than$600 billion rom 2020. The level o activity during 2007 set it on track toachieve these levels with the current credit crunch testing the marketsresolve, but not causing patient investors to question the industrysstrong undamentals.

Clean energy is clearly no longer a marginal investment class, o interestonly to specialists and those prepared to accept lower returns or altruisticreasons. The pioneering amily unds which opened up the sector havebeen joined by mainstream utility companies, asset managers andpension unds in providing unding, whether to build generation capacity,

support promising new technologies or invest in one o the growingnumber o publicly quoted sustainable energy companies. Put simply they have realized that it has become riskier to bet against clean energythan to bet on it.

Sustainable energy and energy e ciency have soared up the world's political

agenda. And the money has ollowed: in 2007, new investment reached$148.4 billion worldwide, up nearly ve- old rom $33.4 billion in 2004. Thecredit crisis, which has rocked the worlds capital markets to their core, hasslowed this meteoric rise, but money is still owing into clean energy inrecognition o two undamental truths: climate change is not going to goaway any time soon; and exposure to high and volatile ossil uel costs is notgoing to become any more palatable.

Clean energy technologies span all stages o maturity, allowing di erent typeso investors to get in on the act. The bulk o investment is going into asset

nance building new renewable energy projects and bio uels processingcapacity which rose 68 per cent to reach $84.5 billion in 2007. Billions o dollars are also owing into renewable energy equipment companies via theworlds public markets, with $23.4 billion raised in 2007. Sustainable energycompanies now account or 19 per cent o all new capital raised on the publicmarkets by the energy sector.

Wind is the most mature clean energy technology. It accounted or more thana third o investment in renewable generation capacity in 2007 attractingmore investment than nuclear or hydroelectric power. Twenty-one gigawatts(GW) o new wind capacity was added worldwide in 2007, and in March

2008 the industry passed the milestone o 100GW installed capacity. Windinvestment in 2007 was ocused on the U.S., China and Spain, which togetheraccounted or nearly 60 per cent o new wind arms built around the world.Furthermore, the development o wind technology is ar rom over. Fundingis directed towards increasing the size and e ciency o turbines, as well as todeveloping massive turbines or deployment ar o shore where wind qualityis good and there are no neighbours to complain about the view.

Solar energy is the astest-growing sector. A multitude o exciting newtechnologies and applications propelled it into the limelight in 2007, whenit attracted $17.7 billion in project nancing, nearly a quarter o all new

investment up a massive 250 per cent on the previous year. Solar is also theleading sector or venture capital investment, as investors back such emergingtechnologies as thin lm, which uses less silicon, or the exciting area o Solar Thermal Electricity Generation, which concentrates the heat o the sun withmirrors to produce steam and drive a conventional turbine.

It is now generally accepted that there is no silver bullet or the worlds energyproblems. We have to generate more clean energy, but we also have to usewhat we generate ar more cleverly. Companies working on energy e ciencyare also attracting record investment, especially rom early-stage investors. This re ects a broader trend. A ew years ago, when energy prices started tosurge, investors made money by backing companies whose technologies hadbeen struggling to break even, but which aced attractive prospects. Morerecently they have had to go back to basics and look or winners among thenext generation o technologies, rom cellulosic and algae-based bio uels which bypass the con ict between ood and uel or land through to next-generation solar and digital energy management.

Investment in sustainable energy has not only grown in the past ew years,but has also diversi ed geographically. As little as ve years ago, clean energymeant wind, and that meant investing in Denmark, Germany and Spain. Since

then we have seen renewable capacity rollout shi ting away rom Europe andtowards China and the U.S. Developing countries attracted 23 per cent ($26billion) o asset nancing in 2007, compared to just 13 per cent ($1.8 billion)in 2004, although most o this went to China, India and Brazil. India and China,

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/ G e t t y

I m a g e

regainingparadiseby Liz Thompson

L z Tho p on, the or er Energy an En ron ent m n ter o bar a o , a na e a UNEP Cha p on o the Earth n 2008. The a ar g en to out tan ng en ron ental lea er ho ha e gn fcantly n uence the protect on an u ta na le anage ent o the planet en ron ent.

Each ue o Our Planet eature the e o one o UNEP Cha p on . For ore n or at on on the UNEP Cha p on o the Earth a ar eehttp:// .unep.org/cha p on /



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In his epic poems Paradise Lost and Paradise Regained , John Milton exploresthe existence o paradise and o losing and then regaining it. His theme,o course, is spiritual, but the concept o losing paradise could equally applyto the possible impact o climate change on the ecology and economy o the globe. Nowhere is this more likely than in the Small Island DevelopingStates (SIDS). Their size, population and resource base severely constrain theirproduction capacity, making them peculiarly vulnerable to environmentalproblems and economic shocks. They are on the ront line o damage romclimate change.

Many see the Caribbean as presenting a snapshot o the landscape o paradise.But they do not see how climate change threatens to distort or destroy theislands idyllic image by damaging their physical environment, underminingeconomic gains and permanently compromising their peoples' quality o li e.Fortunately, severe as the threat is, the prescription or regaining paradise

is available. It is to reduce greenhouse gas emissions (and by so doingshrink our carbon and ecological ootprints), and to pursue a paradigm o industrialization and social and economic development which is sustainablebecause it is predicated on renewable and in nite resources instead o nite,expensive and increasingly inaccessible ossil uels.

UNDP's Human Development Report reminds us that climate change is thede ning human development issue o our generation and cautions that it isstill a preventable crisis, but only just. This strikes an almost dire note whenmeasured against the degree o uncertainty as to the outcome and nalcommitments expected rom the 2009 Copenhagen con erence to replacethe present arrangements under the Kyoto Protocol.

Amazingly, the debate among policy makers and their negotiators continues toocus on nuances o language and the placement o brackets and punctuation

all in the name o protecting their national interest. To many people, suchinterests appear obscure, abstract and likely to be rendered irrelevant unlessthe global community can agree on strict xed targets with speci c time

rames or reducing greenhouse gas emissions. This is imperative or SIDS: theenvironmental and economic danger they ace will not be alleviated, to saythe least, by the two degree increase in global temperature around which

consensus seems to be coalescing. At current levels o 0.7 degrees, SIDS areon the edge o survival. A urther 1.3 degree temperature increase will pushthem into crisis.

Caribbean SIDS working assiduously to achieve the best developmentoutcome, even though they bear only marginal responsibility or globalgreenhouse gas levels have set targets or incorporating renewableenergy technologies. They recognize that their rapid di usion is critical orboth cutting emissions and achieving sustainable development. Settledtargets or renewables di er among the islands but generally range rom 15per cent to 30 per cent o total energy by 2020. Renewable energy projectshave been and are being developed, many with the support o the CaribbeanRenewable Energy Development Programme an initiative o the EnergyMinisters o the Caribbean Community to reduce barriers to the increaseduse o renewable energy thus reducing the dependency on ossil uels whilecontributing to the reduction o greenhouse gas emissions.

Caribbean development can be anchored on renewable energy. Severalinitiatives are in progress: Jamaica has a CDM-certi ed wind arm and theutility companies in Barbados, Guyana, Grenada and Dominica are alsopreparing to use wind power. Jamaica is experimenting with hydroelectricity,

cogeneration rom bagasse and biomass and is already adding ethanolto petrol. Some islands have land ll gas recovery; others are taking stepstoward it. St Kitts Nevis is working on geothermal energy. The BarbadosNational Energy Policy 2007 allows householders and corporations to

eed power rom renewable sources into the national grid. Barbadosalready uses solar water heaters rom its mature indigenous industry.It is the largest supplier o these units to other Caribbean islands, and oneBarbadian manu acturer has even set up a actory in Nigeria. Guyana,with vast land and water resources, is developing bio uels and bagasse,and is working towards hydroelectricity. Finally, there has been muchdiscussion about exploiting the temperature di erential between sur aceand bottom temperatures in the Caribbean Sea through Ocean ThermalEnergy Conversion.

The commendable e orts o Caribbean SIDS require greater collaborationrom the international community. The developed countries, which are

the largest emitters o greenhouse gases, have never quite ul lled theircommitment to make available adequate nancial and technical resourcesto support the goal o poor developing countries, especially SIDS, o

achieving sustainable social and economic development. The Caribbeanthrust toward renewable energy technologies has the potential o creatingcompetitive advantage, developing the kind o technology typical o theglobal knowledge economy which precipitates improvements in qualityo li e. The use o renewables earns revenue, reduces carbon ootprints,diminishes dependency on ossil uels, saves oreign exchange on petroleumproducts and ultimately enables sustainable development. These eaturescharacterize Brazils highly success ul experiment with ethanol.

Regional organizations calculate that in 2004 the cost o importing 100million barrels o oil into the Caribbean was $6.5 billion, an exorbitant sum

or the area's SIDS, already attempting to cope with ood price increases and ashrinking share o global trade. The PetroCaribe agreement was the prescribedcure. Its terms include de erring payment or 60 per cent o supplied uel

or 25 years at a maximum interest rate o 2 per cent per annum. However,without identi ed unding or a clear strategy and implementation schedule

or introducing renewable energy technologies, Caribbean signatories toPetroCaribe are digging a deep hole o debt rom which they will nd itvery di cult to emerge. The twin state o Antigua and Barbuda graphicallyillustrates the point. In 2007 the country's population was estimated at 70,000with a GDP o $1 billion. From the middle o 2006 to mid 2007, it accrued

a debt under PetroCaribe o US $44.1 million. By December 2007, the totalindebtedness o the twelve Caribbean and our Central American countriesto Venezuela or uel under the agreement had already reached $1.17 billion.How will they repay that colossal sum?

Venezuela has some marine boundary disputes across the region andsome o the islands o the Eastern Caribbean that are in its debt are aboutto o er marine territory or oil exploration. Will those o shore resources beclaimed or o ered against the debt owed? The situation could potentiallyallow Venezuela inextricably to entrench itsel and assert sovereignty orin uence over several islands' hydrocarbon resources. It may there ore beargued that apart rom the universal urgency o the economic and ecologicaldrivers o the introduction o renewable energy, geopolitical considerationsalso make it imperative that developed countries help Caribbean SIDS toestablish a Renewable Energy Fund to nance the research, developmentand implementation o renewable energy technologies with the potential totrans orm and protect Caribbean society. The upcoming negotiations mustrecognize that reducing carbon emissions and establishing a renewableenergy ramework is required now. These measures are necessary globally but are urgent or SIDS.

Paradise can be entirely lost, or the climate crisis can be halted and paradiseregained. Whether we hold on to paradise is entirely up to us. We must makethe required decisions and take the actions necessary to combat climatechange as we journey toward Copenhagen.



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making biofuels


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sustainableby Ed Gallagher

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As the twentieth century drew to a close, there was considerable support orthe use o bio uels as a source o renewable energy. To many people, theyo ered signi cant savings in greenhouse gas emissions compared to ossil

uels, an opportunity or reduced dependency on oil or transport, andpotential as a counter weight to increasing oil prices. They also promisedan opportunity or rural economies to bene t rom a new market or theirproducts and a chance o narrowing the gap between rich and poor nations.

Bio uel development was encouraged by government subsidies, and rapidgrowth occurred in many parts o the world. Forty per cent o Brazilian sugarcane is used or bio uel production, or example, as is almost a quarter o maize grown in the United States. Although only around 1 per cent o arable land is cultivated to grow eedstock

or bio uels, there has been increasing concern over the way a largelyunchecked market has developed, and about its social and environmentalconsequences. Recent research has con rmed that ood prices have beendriven signi cantly higher by competition or prime agricultural land and

that savings in greenhouse gas emissions are much smaller and in somecases entirely eliminated when environmentally important land, such asrain orest, is destroyed to grow bio uels. As a result, many now believe thatthe economic bene ts o bio uels have been obtained at too high a socialand environmental price, and they question whether they can be a trulysustainable source o energy. The United Kingdom has always had sustainability at the heart o its bio uelpolicies and set up the Renewable Fuels Agency to ensure that this goalwas met. The direct e ects o bio uel production are already being assessedthrough ve measures o environmental per ormance and two measureso social per ormance, as well as measures o the energy e ciency o theproduction processes used and o the greenhouse gas savings achieved.Previous land use is also recorded.

The indirect e ects o bio uel production such as land displacement haverecently been examined by a review commissioned by the U.K. Governmentand carried out by the Renewable Fuels Agency. It con rmed the concerns, and

work is now under way to measure the indirect e ects and incorporate themin reporting and analysis. It concluded that we need to be more cautious anddiscriminating in our use o bio uels and called or a slowing o targets until,in particular, the indirect e orts could be monitored and evaluated properly.But it also saw a way orward or a sustainable bio uels industry.

I this is to happen, bio uels should use the right eedstocks, be grown on

the right land and use the least energy intensive production processes. Thus, ethanol derived rom sugar cane, grown on land not needed or oodproduction, armed with an e cient use o ertilisers and produced usingbagasse (sugar cane waste) as a source o energy, would be a sustainablebio uel. However, ethanol derived rom maize using highly intensive armingprocesses, grown on land needed or ood, and using energy rom coal- redpower stations, would be an unsustainable one.

The Review recommended that bio uel production should be concentratedon idle agricultural land areas that have been previously armed butwhich would remain uncultivated i not used in this way and on marginal

areas which are unproductive when used or ood crops or livestock. It alsorecommended increasing the use o wastes and residues or eedstocks andcreating incentives or second generation bio uels using new technologies,such as cellulosic ethanol rom woody plants or biodiesel rom algae.

The Review also concluded that, le t to itsel , the market was unlikely todevelop in a sustainable way, and so recommended more research into bothindirect and direct e ects and introducing internationally agreed mandatorysustainability standards. These should be accompanied by ull publicin ormation to allow consumers to make their views known by purchasing

uels o which they approve.

While the contribution rom bio uels may be more constrained and smallerthan envisaged in the optimism o some years ago, they cannot be abandonedas part o a low carbon uture, particularly or transport. They, along with othermeasures, will be needed to cope with the developed world's increasingappetite or travel and the millions o new motorists expected in India, China,Russia and elsewhere.



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"China rom its own perspective must realisesustainable development, we must save energy,raise energy e ciency, develop renewableenergies and adopt measures aimed at reducinggreenhouse gases.Ch ne e v ce m n ter o Plann ng X e Zhenhua

numbers

verbatim

We have experienced great economictrans ormations throughout history: the industrialrevolution, the technology revolution, and theera o globalization. We are now on the thresholdo another: the age o green economics. Withthe right policies and a global ramework, we cangenerate economic growth and steer it in a low-carbon direction. Handled properly, our e ortsto cope with the fnancial crisis can rein orceour e orts to combat climate change. In today'scrisis lies tomorrow's opportunity economicopportunity, measured in jobs and growth.U.N. secretary-General ban K - oon

23percentage o ne electr c ty generat ngcapac ty a e up y rene a le energy

n 2007 UNEP Global Trends in Sustainable Energy Investment 2008

2.7hu an ty per-per on ootpr nt n hectare . The Earth neean a erage 2.1 hectare per per on to pro uce our re ourcean capture e on WWF Living Planet Report

2 percentage o total energy the Un te K ng opro uce ro rene a le . in Ger any the fgure

8.5 per cent. The Guardian

4151nu er o Cdm pro ect n thep pel ne aroun the orl . A r caho t 84 pro ect , 27 o the n souA r ca. www.cdmpipeline.org

41g gatonne o glo al energy-relate CO2 e onpro ecte or 2030 un ercurrent tren , a 45 per cent

ncrea e ro 2006 le el .O erall greenhou e-ga

e on , nclu ng non-energy CO2 an all otherga e , are pro ecte to gro

y 35 per cent, ro 44 to 60g gatonne o CO2 equ alento er the a e per o . International Energy Agency

65nu er o countr e th nat onalgoal or accelerat ng the u e o rene a le energy. REN 21

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Moving a strong port olio o renewable energytechnologies towards ull market integration is oneo the main elements needed to make the energytechnology revolution happen.No uo Tanaka, Execut e d rector o the internat onalEnergy Agency

We need to ensure that we drive investment inrenewable energies so that Australia, as we shi t to alower carbon economy, does have a range o energy

options available to us. We dont know now, at thispoint in time, which o these options is going to bethe most commercially viable, but what we do knowis we need to invest now to ensure we have thoseoptions on energy into the uture.Au tral an En ron ent m n ter Penny wong

So much has happened in the renewableenergy sector during the past fve years that theperceptions o some politicians and energy sectoranalysts lag ar behind the reality o where therenewables industry is today.

moha e El-A hry, Cha r o REN21

I were serious about global warming and itsconsequences, then the market has to address allthe sources o greenhouse emissions.Pre ent bharrat jag eo o Guyana, ho ant nternat onal

n e tor to pay or the ncrea ngly tang le eneft o pra n ore t ha tat

2.4 ll on o o n the

rene a le energyector aroun the orl ,nclu ng rene a le

energy anu actur ng,operat on an

a ntenance. REN 21

Whats green or the environment can also begreen or the economy solar is the uture; itsnow; it cant be stopped.Cal orn a Go ernor Arnol sch arzenegger at the solar Po erinternat onal 2008 Con ent on n san d ego

32in a percentage o Clean de elop entmechan (Cdm) pro ect . Ch na ha 19cent an braz l 13 per cent. UNEP Global Trends in Sustainable Energy Investment 2008

27 b ll ona ount n U.s. ollar ra e y clean energyco pan e on the orl pu l c arket

n 2007 ou le the a ount ra e thepre ou year. UNEP Global Trends in Sustainable Energy Investment 2008

627nu er o en angere pec e n braz l, up

ro 218 pec e n 1989 Associated Press / Brazilian Environment Ministry



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books

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G een Jobs: Towa ds decent jobs n a

susta nable low-ca bon wo ld

Th ne tu y on the e erg ng glo al greenecono y un e an co one y UNEP ththe internat onal La our O ce, the internat onalTra e Un on Con e erat on an the internat onalOrgan zat on o E ployer ay tackl ng cl atechange coul create ten o ll on o ne o narea l ke rene a le energy, con truct on, tran port,agr culture an ore try, not ng that the glo al arket

or en ron ental pro uct an er ce pro ecte toou le ro the current $1,370 ll on a year to $2,740

ll on y 2020.

Atmosphe c B own Cloud epo tTh report pre entthe late t fn ng onthe At o pher c bro nClou pheno enonan analyze t

pl cat on or glo alan reg onal cl atechange an the l ean l el hoo o o ethree ll on people.in A a, a an o ootan part cle orethan three k lo etre e, cau e y urn ng o

o l uel an o a , tretch ng ro the Ara anPen n ula to Ch na, tr gger ng a er e o co plexcl at c change . The c ent t eh n the reportha e ent fe a urther f e reg onal AbC hot pot ,

nclu ng ea tern Ch na, outhern A r ca an theA azon a n, an l t 13 c t e h ch are a orcontr utor to the AbC pheno enon.

B od ve s ty and Ca bon AtlasTh atla y the UNEP worl Con er at on mon tor ngCentre ho the pat al relat on h p et een area o h gh car on tock an area o o er ty alue, th

ap o reg on an n ual countr e . The o ect

to e on trate ho ata et an app ng toolcan help the REdd n t at e (Re uc ng E on rode ore tat on an degra at on) to el er oth re ucecar on e on an eneft or o er ty.

Global Glac eChanges: actsand fgu esCl ate change

hr nk ng anth nn ng glac er

orl e, putt ngater uppl e at

r k or ll on o people. Th reportpro e an llu trateglo al o er eo the a a la le ata on glac er an ce cap , the r

tr ut on an the r ocu ente change . itconclu e that tren cont nue an go ern ent a lto agree on eep e on re uct on at the cruc al U.N.cl ate con ent on eet ng n Copenhagen n 2009,

glac er ay co pletely appear ro anyounta n range .

Cl mate Act onCl ate Act on

an annualpu l cat on pro uce

y su ta na lede elop entinternat onal ncolla orat on thUNEP. it eatureauthor tat e o ce

ro go ern ent ,ntergo ern ental organ at on , c l oc ety an

the pr ate ector on cl ate change t gat on,a aptat on, technology an fnance, an nclu e anAct on ect on eta l ng tep that u ne e ango ern ent can take to re uce the r car on ootpr nt.

impacts o Cl mate Change:How can weadapt?Th Simplifed Guide to the IPCCsClimate Change 2007:Impacts, Adaptationand Vulnerability

u ar e the reporto work ng Group iio the iPCC FourthA e ent Report un er 16 key e age .

Gettinggreener:gettingslimmer,andgoingdigital!

C A 0 8 _ F C. q x 0 3 / 11 / 2 0 0 8 11 : 3 a g e 2

UNEP

ni te Nat ionsEni ronment rorammeCh.des Anmones 11,CH-121 Chtelaine

Tel:+41-22- 178244Fax:+41-22-7 73464

www.unep.ch

Impacts of climate change:How can we adapt?

Asimplifed guide to the IPCCsClimate Change 2007: Impacts, Adaptation and

Vulnerability

Project Atmospheric Brown Clouds (ABC)

Annual Report

January December 2006

Compiled by

UNEP Regional Resource Centre for Asiaandthe Pacific(RRC.AP)

February2007

--

-

-

-

Global Glacier Changes:facts and figures

. m .c horldGlacier onitoring Service

epartmentof Geography,University of Zurich,Switzerland

Tel.:+41 44 635 5139Fax:+41 44 635 6841

e-mail:wgmsgeo.uzh.chwww.wgms.ch

- - - -

. u n . rUnitedationsEnvironmentProgramme

P..Box 30552 - 00100 airobi,Kenya Tel.:+254 20 762 1234Fax:+254 20 762 3927

e-mail:uneppubunep.orgwww.unep.org

Gl

l Gl c i r C h n

: f c t

n ur

UE

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Hot, Flat and C owded: Why We Need a G een

revolut on And How t Can renew Ame caTho a Fr e an (Farrar, strau anG roux, septe er 2008)in uent al Ne York T e ournal tTho a Fr e an turn h attent onto glo al ar ng an energy,argu ng that the U.s. nee to et anexa ple or the orl y u l ng ane clean energy y te a e onrene a le energy an re hap ng the

arket through a ne reg e o taxe ,

ncent e an pr ce gnal . The uch-toute green re olut on ha har ly

egun, he ay , a ng that the U.s.u t lea th a Green Ne deal, purre y the greene t genera

an the fr t green Pre ent.

2008 Wo ld Ene gy Outloo(internat onal Energy Agency, 2008)The internat onal Energy Agency 2008 worl Energy Outlook glo al energy tren , th pro ect on to 2030. it look at heth

the orl ac ng a upply crunch, an a k hat type o poKyoto pol cy ra e ork coul ta l ze greenhou e ga e at loconcentrat on le el . it al o pro e n- epth analy o pocl ate change pol cy cenar o , o l an ga upply pro pectenergy po erty n re ource-r ch u -saharan A r can countr e

Wo ld resou ces repo t 2008: roots o res l ence:G ow ng the Wealth o the Poo(worl Re ource in t tute, 2008)Th worl Re ource in t tute reportanalyze ho u ta na le, nature-

a e enterpr e can help the orl t o ll on rural poor e cape thepo erty trap. it outl ne potent algo ern ent act on , ay ng that cal ngup en ron ental nco e requ reo ner h p, local capac ty an a apt enet ork . it argue that pro ng rurall el hoo can help cu h on cl atechange pact an pro e oc al ta l ty.

OECD Env onmental Outloo to 2030(Organ zat on or Econo c Cooperat onan de elop ent, 2008)Tackl ng the key en ron entalpro le e ace to ay nclu ngcl ate change, o er ty lo ,

ater carc ty an the health pacto pollut on oth ach e a le ana or a le, accor ng to th OECdreport. it pro e analy e o econo can en ron ental tren to 2030 anh ghl ght a x o pol c e that cana re the e challenge .


R e u t e r s


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enoughis

enoughby Lalita Ramdas

R u p a k

D e

C h o w

d h u r i

/ R



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Climate changes gross inequity is one o the most shocking things aboutit. Global warming as UNDP's Human Development Report has recentlypointed out is not a uture apocalypse, but a present reality or many o theworld's poorest people Less than 2 per cent o those a ected by what itcalls global climate shocks live in rich countries.

Mass poverty, combined with a worsening ecological and economic security

scenario, could create huge numbers o climate re ugees, aggravating socialand other tensions in ways that would make todays war on terror pale intoinsigni cance. Some 125 million people, or example, could be displaced

rom their homes in India and Bangladesh in the next ew decades i action isnot taken to curb climate change.

Greenpeace has been a rontrunner in alerting the public to the Earthsdeteriorating condition through audacious, sometimes con rontational, butalways non-violent actions. O ten we ploughed a lonely urrow. Today weare no longer alone the world now acknowledges that climate change isarguably the most serious threat o our times. We believe it is ethically and

ecologically imperative to build a clean energy system based exclusivelyon the e cient use o renewable energy sources. Our core objectivesshould be to protect the environment, to ensure sustainable and equitabledevelopment or all, and to guarantee a sa e and nuclear- ree world or

uture generations. Ultimately, energy security is the best guarantor o human security.

Climate change is both an opportunity and a challenge. For us, it has servedas a catalyst and an invitation or an energy revolution outlined in the2007 Energy [R]evolution scenario. The message is simple: it is possible tocut greenhouse gas emissions and avoid the worst o climate change withexisting technologies as well as phase out nuclear power by switching torenewable energy and improving energy e ciency . The European RenewableEnergy Council and 10 institutions joined Greenpeace in producing thescenario, which is modelled by the German Space Agency. It credibly showsthat a solution to greenhouse gas emissions rom energy exists, and that allthat is lacking is political will rom governments. Among its recommendationsare that the world must get on a course to stay as ar as possible below atwo degree Celsius temperature rise. Global greenhouse gas emissions mustbe more than halved by 2050. This can be done by employing sustainablerenewable energy and energy e ciency.

The International Energy Agency (IEA) estimates that approximately 10 trilliondollars must be spent in the next couple o decades on replacing powerplants and other energy in rastructure in industrialized countries and onbuilding new in rastructure in the rapidly industrializing South. The politicaland economic conditions which shape those investments will determine ourenergy uture to the middle o this century and beyond. It is in that contextthat we will avoid dangerous climate change, and nuclear disaster or not.

Coal, bio uels and nuclear power will undoubtedly jostle or much o thisinvestment i there is not a clear-headed vision o what a renewables-based

uture has to o er. The nuclear industry has already in uenced top leadershipin many national governments to commit to the atom as an essential part o

the energy mix. Yet, we believe it is not part o the climate solution but anexpensive and dangerous distraction.

Industrialized nations need to make binding commitments to cut emissionsby 30 per cent in 2020 and 80 per cent in 2050 through domestic measures,and to direct massive unds or decarbonization to developing countries. Theproportion o the suns rays that reaches the Earths sur ace can alone satis y

global energy consumption 10,000 times over. On average, each square metreo land is exposed to enough sunlight to receive 1,700 kilowatt-hours o energy each year. Alternative and renewable technologies especially solarand wind are enjoying unprecedented growth and economic productivity.By one estimate the net worth o the solar electricity market is already 13billion annually.

There are three major components to charting a carbon- ree and nuclear- reeenergy road map. We must say no to nukes, by phasing out existing reactorsand subsidies to nuclear energy, and by building no more commercial reactors.We must say yes to a renewable energy uture by reallocating resources rom

existing support or nuclear and ossil uel technologies to clean, renewableenergy research, and by setting legally binding targets or renewable energy,while ensuring stable returns or investors.

The current political leadership seems to be hedging its bets as it playsaround with the dangerous cocktail o nuclear, coal and bio uels none o them clean, green or unlimited. Courage and con dence is needed to seizethe moment and opt or renewables and tough e ciency measures. Newvoices are needed to speak up and convince our leaders on the basis o solidarguments combined with number crunching.

As a grassroots activist, I challenge the green movement to build newpartnerships and alliances with poor and indigenous communities andwith the women's movement in our battle to save our ragile ecosystem.Do we have the courage to mobilize the power and energy o those whostand to lose the most rom the direct impact o global warming and whocan there ore put pressure on their leaders? The Human DevelopmentReport points out that climate change poses challenges at many levels andchallenges all people to re ect on how we manage the environment o theone thing that we share in common: planet Earth.

Time is not on our side. It is now 11 years since the Kyoto Protocol was agreed and it is not nearly strong enough to tackle climate change. Governmentsmust be willing to act with urgency and with the swi tness o somebodywhose house is on re, or indeed our planetary home could well be ablaze i action is not taken. I t is up to us, the public, to keep up the pressure and pointout that corporate interests are not always those o the people.

Finally, as Arjun Makhijani, points out in the pre ace to his book Carbon-free Nuclear-free: An Energy Road Map for the U.S. the history o developmentshows that the norms or the good li e are set by the wealthy. We must developthe notion o ENOUGH. We ignore at our cost Mahatma Gandhi's timelessadvice on sustainability: The Earth has enough or everyones need but not

or everyones greed. We need the courage to say: Enough is enough!



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green valleyby Martin Roscheisen

Many companies like mine are emerging rom Silicon Valley with a businessmission to contribute technologies to help solve the climate crisis. We believegovernment and business leaders around the world should be doing all they

can to encourage and support such innovation. At Nanosolar which thisyear completed a $300 million strategic equity nancing we manu actureour products in Cali ornia and in Germany, both o which provide substantialsubsidies to businesses developing renewable energy solutions.


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The direction in which these innovations and policies must go is very clear.First, while some countries have made good progress, others must expandtheir policies to support not just centralized, large-scale solar powergeneration acilities with a capacity o 50 megawatts or more, but smaller andless centralized acilities, allowing or 1 to 10 megawatt power generation. These smaller utility-scale acilities would allow or municipal solar energyplants that tie directly into existing local power grids and so would notrequire specialized, expensive, new or enhanced transmission lines greatlyincreasing the number o communities with access to a ordable solar power.Such solar energy distribution would enable broad-scale residential andcommercial use, and eliminate the current situation in the United States, orexample, where most solar power use continues to be generated throughcost-ine ective on-site solar panel installation. Towns and cities throughoutEurope and Asia have already proven the concept, and many increasingly

entire counties are now implementing plans to achieve 100 per centrenewable energy, based on a mix o solar and bio uels. This approach works,it o ers signi cant economies o scale relative to other approaches, and it ispossible now. So governments whose policies avour large-scale solar energypower generation acilities must re-orient themselves to support solar energygeneration on all scales.

Second, we must move our transportation systems rom uel-based to all-electric, in order vastly to improve overall energy e ciency. Electric vehiclesare about our times more energy e cient than uel-based ones. This isbecause uel engines mostly create heat and so most o the available energyunits are consumed by the engine itsel instead o powering the vehicle. I wesucceeded in making the transition to all-electric vehicles or all transport,we would basically cut global energy consumption in hal . For mysel , I havevowed that the Toyota Prius I have driven or six years will be the last uel-powered car that I own. It bakes in the sun all day while I work in our SanJose, Cali ornia, headquarters. My next car will not sit idle during the daylighthours when I am not using it, but recharge under a solar carport at no costwhatsoever, and in a way that does not in any way diminish my mobility. Thiscan, and should, be everyone's goal.

When we started Nanosolar Inc. in 2002, our goal was simple: to make solarpower the conversion o sunlight into electricity broadly a ordable andpro table to install. We believed then, and our work over the past six yearshas proven, that the limitations o the solar energy technology o the time solar panels that are ragile, heavy and too expensive or most commonapplications were surmountable.

Our team has developed technologies including manu acturing processesand more than 200 patents to produce thin, durable non- ragile solar cellsat high speed and low cost. Our cells are produced by applying a patented typeo ink directly onto an inexpensive, highly conductive oil, in a process similarto a printing press operation. We have developed a machine that prints sheetso solar cells, several metres wide and several kilometres long that are rolledonto cylinders resembling large rolls o aluminium oil. This manu acturing

process has a small ootprint (so is itsel environmentally minimalist) and doesnot require expensive vacuum chambers. Our solar cell rolls are small enoughto allow or low-cost storage and shipping. We are currently printing themat a rate o 100 eet per minute, equivalent to achieving production o onegigawatt o solar cells enough to power hal a million homes annually.

Our solar panels are currently only being sold to utilities and large powerproducers, but we envision that it will not be long be ore our technologymakes a ordable solar energy available to residential and small commercialusers. Indeed we believe that our solar cells will make possible the delivery o sustainable sunlit energy to all parts o the world in which there is a decentamount o sunshine available.

The twenty- rst century requires a transition to broad-scale solar energygeneration and distribution, and the elimination o uel-based vehicles.Indeed these changes are already happening be ore our eyes in a sort o silent revolution, o ten without much media or political attention. Ourgovernment and business leaders already know the direction in which theymust lead us through the climate and energy crises. Overdue though it is, weare starting to see signi cant strides in this direction, including recognitionby both candidates in the U.S. presidential election, that the country must beweaned rom its dependence on oreign uel. At Nanosolar we look orward toa uture in which solar and other renewable energy is available on a broad anda ordable basis worldwide, and in which our vehicles collect and generateenergy much more e ciently.

OUR PLANET GENERATiNG POwER, jObs ANd dEvELOPmENTs

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Retooling the global economy or a low-carbon and environmentallyresponsible uture must begin immediately and a major new United Statesinitiative in this area is vital. The recent downturn in the economy makes thischange all the more necessary: energy e ciency and renewable energy canbe an engine o dramatic new economic growth and job creation. It will be upto the incoming president to marshal public and industry sentiment behindsuch a reinvestment in our uture.

We are at last seeing a global explosion o nancial and political interest inenergy, ocused largely but, ominously, not exclusively on clean energy,since, in addition, to solar, wind and other low-carbon sources, investmentsin some o the most CO 2-intensive sources are also on the rise. Innovation

is the li e-blood o economic growth and renewal. It has been knownor decades that the bulk o new growth results rom the invention, andre-invention, o new scienti c and technological opportunities. Over 50 yearsago Economics Nobel

OP 2008 12 Renewable Energy

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Transcript of OP 2008 12 Renewable Energy