Transitioning to a low-carbon future

There are two essential aspects to consider when we refer to a low-carbon future: energy security and energy efficiency. The first factor, energy security, has been around for decades, but what does it mean? The European Commission and the International Energy Agency (IEA) define it as providing reasonably priced, reliable, and environmentally friendly energy (Müller-Kraenner 2007). Although it is a straightforward definition, can you fulfill all three variables to achieve energy security? What price are we willing to pay for energy that is also environmentally friendly? Are you able to get access to reliable energy that is environmentally friendly? The second factor is energy efficiency, where we need to ensure that we do more with less by reducing our energy demand. For every watt of energy that we produce, we need to ensure that we can stretch it further. The greenest and cheapest energy is the energy we do not use.

As Greenpeace highlights...