.png)
This article was published by Dr Chen Wei Nee (when she was Chief Strategic Officer, Sustainable Energy Development Authority, Malaysia; Member of the Global Future Council on Energy Technologies) on 29 October 2019. Original article on the World Economic Forum website. Listen to her at the upcoming CGM webinar on 11 November 2020.
If we get things right, by 2030 the global carbon concentration will drop to 350 parts per million from 407 parts today. By then, the energy sector will largely be electricity, and at least half of the electricity is from renewable resources. Deep de-carbonizing efforts will be demonstrated by governments and corporates, and yes, even the ordinary members of the public.
By 2030, electricity will also be democratized and people will be empowered with choices and they will choose energy sources that sustain life. Power generations will also shift from centralized structure to greater distributed renewable generations. The electricity system will be defined by further digitalization, enabling the concept of sharing economy in the energy space.
By 2030, trading of excess solar electricity with neighbours and sharing of electric vehicles within the community will be the way of living. Children will be taught to live in harmony with the environment. All these did not happen by chance. It happened because there was sufficient willpower to deliberately shape the future of energy. It happened because the need to preserve the future of our children finally matters.