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Side effects of the energy transition in Brazil
In recent weeks, São Paulo has been featured as the most polluted metropolis in the world. The haze enveloping the city of 11.4 million inhabitants originates from the smoke of wildfires ravaging the country and from atmospheric pollution. In this dramatic context, amid terrifying news about the growing number of climate migrants, the need for more sustainable energy sources is impossible to ignore. Poliana...
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Net zero and energy bills: more payback, less push back
To win hearts and minds, and to prevent green backlash, net-zero policies must translate into lower bills and better services for ‘ordinary’ households. An inclusive demand flexibility strategy is vital to this. Sophie Yule-Bennett and Euan Graham report.
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How AI is fuelling the climate crisis, not solving it
‘Artificial intelligence will make it easier to combat climate change.’ That’s the bold claim made by billionaire and self-proclaimed climate problem–solver Bill Gates. But Gates – a well-known advocate of geoengineering – is not alone in promoting the idea that technology can be our saviour. Seden Anlar reports.
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What Labour has done on green energy — and what it could do next
Tough decisions lie ahead for the UK government as it tries to decarbonise electricity generation by 2030. Several key decisions have been made but much remains unknown, particularly on reform of the electricity market and the detail of collaboration with the EU. Ros Taylor reports.
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Decentralizing Ukraine’s energy future: microgrids as a path to independence
Ukraine’s energy landscape has been profoundly impacted by the ongoing conflict, with extensive damage to infrastructure and a historical reliance on Russian imports for traditional energy sources like coal, gas and nuclear fuel. Rebuilding the centralized, Soviet-era energy system is no longer a viable option. Attempts to restore a fossil fuel or nuclear-based centralized sector are fraught with military risks, slow progress, high costs...
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Germany’s mixed record disappoints the climate conscious
Despite a record rollout of renewables, expectations for a notably greener Germany have not been met. Environmental think tanks and NGOs are taking their gripes to court to make the German government comply with German law – and the coalitions’ own promises. Paul Hockenos reports.
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Green Deal under attack? Mapping the risks with the European Green Deal Risk Radar
There is a real risk that the European Green Deal will be weakened this new European policy cycle. What exact changes will be made to it? And will or won’t these changes ensure that we stay “the course on all of our goals”, as promised by re-elected European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen? Our new European Green Deal Risk Radar looks into that....
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Harris-Walz ticket vague on post-Biden climate policy
With a moonshot US$500-billion spending programme announced in 2022, President Biden put the US on the map in terms of global climate policy. Thus far, the Democratic Party’s new candidates have been quiet on the issue. But the US climate community has no shortage of suggestions. Paul Hockenos reports.
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EU-China spat over EV tariffs: a race to the bottom?
In a rational world, Europe’s climate-conscious representatives would oppose surcharges that make clean tech, like electric vehicles (EVs) regardless of their origin, more costly. But that’s not the case: environmentalists warn that relying on Chinese imports will undermine a key promise of the European Green Deal, namely economic momentum and high-wage jobs within the bloc. Paul Hockenos reports.
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Making construction sustainable with upcycling
For the global construction industry, concrete is a key component. Even were only renewable energy sources employed for its production, the chemical process emits significant greenhouse gases. Paul Hockenos reports from Prague where the upcycling of waste-site rubble for new buildings cuts demand for concrete – and thus for energy.
This website highlights how energy transitions around the world are moving forward. It shows how they work, and what challenges lie ahead. The e-book on Germany’s Energiewende explains the country’s politics and policies, often regarded as the front runner in the global energy transition.