The EU’s member states are losing their global leadership on renewables because of hasty and contradictory policy changes. Gavin Purchas and Eric Gimon argue that the world can learn from their mistakes: Predictable support for renewable energies, which is in line with cost reductions, is key for the succesful deployment of renewable energies.
Author: Energiewende Team
Germany is revolutionizing how we use energy… and the U.S. could learn a thing or two
Germany’s Energiewende is the world’s most ambitious project to get an industrialized economy on a path towards a sustainable energy system. EDF’s Peter Sopher sums up the goals and lessons for the United States.
Poland’s Renewable Energy Story (Warning: It Sucks)
It is no secret that Poland’s energy system largely depend on coal power. When some actors within the government finally decided to support renewables, the vertically integrated and state-owned energy corporations did everything to defend the destructive status quo that their business model relies on. The case can serve as a cautionary tale, argues Michał Bacia.
How realistic is an Energiewende in Russia?
Renewable energy and energy efficiency are not widely discussed in Russia for many reasons. Germany has certainly been an excellent example of energy transformation, an example other governments would do well to follow, but let’s take a look at the present situation in Russia. Vladimir Slivyak reports from Moscow.
A Renewables Club to change the world
Last year, some of the pioneer countries in renewable energies founded the Renewables Club. Jennifer Morgan, Hans Joachim Schellnhuber and Dirk Messner identify opportunities for cooperation and formulate expectations for the club’s current meeting in Abu Dhabi.
German energy strategy under threat from EU “paradigm shift”
Oliver Geden and Severin Fischer of the German Institute for International and Security Affairs (SWP) recently published a study on how the German Energiewende fits into the European context. Today, Geden sums up the issue for us.
The Economic or Competitive Advantages of the Energiewende for Germany
The German Energiewende has repeatedly come under scrutiny for its cost. R. Andreas Kraemer, founding director of Ecologic, argues that the economic benefits prevail: Germany has matured a new branch of industry that creates economic growth and makes Germany more energy independent.
50 shades of green: what determines our electricity future?
In the last decade, governments, the European Commission and numerous research institutes have produced one scenario for the electricity system after the other. These scenarios inform us of the future electricity mix and, importantly, of its costs, as a base for national and European energy policies. Johan Lilliestam argues that cost can not be the only determinant of our future electricity system – first, we have to politically determine what kind of energy future we want to live in.
The EU 2030 Climate and Energy Framework: What is at Stake for the Global Climate?
In the coming months the European Union will lay the foundation of its European climate and energy policies for the next decade. The EU’s decisions on its climate and energy framework until 2030 will also have major impacts on the international climate trajectory in the run-up to COP21 in Paris. Silvia Brugger explains how the EU’s 2030 decisions will influence the global fight against climate change.
Renewables Power a Rural German Village
Regardless of debate about the success of Germany’s renewables revolution, there is no denying that a small town in the corner of rural eastern Germany, 40 miles south of Berlin, may be one of the best examples of decentralized self-sufficiency. Feldheim (pop. 150), in the cash-strapped state of Brandenburg, was a communist collective farm back when Germany was still divided into East and West. Now it is a model renewable energy village putting into practice Germany’s vision of a renewably powered future, as RMI’s Laurie Guevara-Stone reports.