TWC thoughts, Week 9/ Session 8

This lesson is the first after the recess week and since I have my presentation on this day, I looked forward to it. This session on Energy and World Change is also increasingly relevant to our current situation as traditional forms of fossil fuels are running out. In addition, global warming from the rising carbon dioxide levels which leads to rising sea levels and rising average temperatures around the world are also pertinent concerns. Thus the general idea was that we needed to see a paradigm shift from our current unsustainable fossil fuel-based energy intensive economy to an environmentally sound and sustainable clean and green approach.

Session 8: Energy and World Change

We first discussed some drivers of global energy change. One of the factors is due to rising energy consumption and need for economic development especially for developing countries like China. Then there’s the need for sustainability given the negative environmental impact due to our energy use. Lastly there are also new technologies and approaches such as new techniques of energy conservation. These factors are driving us towards global energy change.

Interesting Observations

Prof posed this thought provoking question to us in class: What is the true cost of our usage of fossil fuels? The answer made me realize that my previous viewpoint was myopic. Besides the monetary cost of fossil fuels, more importantly the true cost includes the environmental pricing. We are not paying this cost for our future generations (in terms of environmental degradation), so what we are paying now is not the real cost of fossil fuel. Also, these fossil fuels can be used for other purposes rather than burning it for energy.

Next, Prof also raised the idea to us that the development of renewable forms of energy (such as solar energy) by developed countries in developing countries might actually cause more harm than good. Although it may seem that this will generate employment and inject capital into the host country, in the long run the host country might be exploited. This is because all the capital generated from the renewable energy will go into the hands of the developed nations. To prevent this from happening, the authorities can come up with legislation to protect their own country’s rights with regards to the renewable energy. However, the hands of the authorities are often tied as setting these regulations will mean that businesses will be less willing to work with them. Hence there is a need to strike a balance here.

Lastly, this issue has appeared several times during the previous lessons but it is this lesson that we discussed properly about it. The fact that the Sun provides more energy to the Earth in one hour than humankind currently uses in an entire year is nothing short of amazing. The graph that compared photovoltaics to wind and biomass further shows the scale of how solar energy is much more effective/efficient than other kinds of renewable energy. Thus it is only when someone puts in the effort to collect the data can we see that solar energy is a much more viable choice of renewable energy.

Key Takeaway Points

Leadership is crucial in sustainable development. This is because it is the government that actually determines if a country will use clean and renewable energy. There is this graph that shows how China and Brazil actually has the foresight to invest the largest sum of money in renewable energy sources. Another example would be Singapore which only lately started to implement solar energy panels in the country. Given the many buildings in Singapore, constructing the solar panels above the buildings would be more efficient as there’s no blockage of sunlight.

And last but not least to reiterate the main point: In today’s world traditional fossil fuels are scarce. If we continue with our rate of using fossil fuels, we don’t have much a future ahead of us. Only if we change to more sustainable energy sources can we have a better future.

Issues for Further Discussion

I would actually like to have more responses to my question of Energy Security VS Food Security as I think it’s really a pertinent issue especially in developing countries and even in developed countries like the US as pointed out by the Prof.

Ratings

I would give the session a 9.5/10 due to my largely successful presentation. I sincerely thank everyone for your support and hope that you gained valuable insights and knowledge from my presentation. Looking forward to next lesson on Emerging and Future technologies which is sure to amaze me! Meanwhile do not hesitate to give feedback on my individual review paper to me:)