#2: A story on energy, reaching Net-Zero, clean-tech crowdfunding
Hello there, it’s Àlex, Marc & Miquel, authors of the 3X Newsletter, home of the impact society.
We are here to inspire some of our brightest citizens to write the next chapters of our history by scaling companies or working on projects that help solve society’s biggest problems, while also living environmentally conscious lives.
Let’s dive in!
One reflection
Energy production - a story of villains in disguise and unexpected heroes?
It seems that the level of wealth and GDP of a country does not help when it comes to dealing with the challenges of energy:
Poor countries struggle with energy poverty. Because they lack access to modern energy production, most of their energy comes from solid fuels (ie Coal) that result in massive air pollution and health issues
Rich countries struggle with greenhouse emissions instead. While they have access to modern energy production, they over-rely on high emission sources like Natural Gas
Therefore, one wonders: how do we scale energy production, while shifting to cleaner yet affordable sources?
From the chart above we can extract two clear conclusions:
Renewables and, wait for it, Nuclear are the safest and cleanest sources of energy
Coal and Oil sources are the least safe and “dirtiest” alternatives, with Natural Gas trailing them by not as much as one would think
So now that we have identified the villains and heroes in this story, can the heroes win? That is to say, can we leverage clean, affordable alternatives to scale energy production?
With Solar and Wind sources, the challenge remains in storing and transporting them. But, might Nuclear be the unexpected hero? While having quite negative press, data shows that producing 1 gigawatt of energy through Nuclear sources is:
273 times less polluting than using coal and 240 times less polluting than using oil
820 times more safe than using coal and 613 times more safe than using oil
As usual, there is not just one single solution to a big problem. We will need a combination of scaling clean energy production, reducing emissions from fossil fuels and scaling carbon capture technologies. But perhaps, first we need to reconsider who is the good, the bad and the ugly when it comes to energy.
One framework
Climate change is caused by the accumulation of GreenHouse Gases (GHG) in the atmosphere that leads to a warmer planet. And when does this become seriously alarming? Scientists have established that in order to remain safe, our planet should not get more than 1.5°C warmer. If it does, the consequences might be severe.
So how do we prevent this from happening? We must reach Net-Zero. Which is the technical way of saying: humans, quit adding more GHG into the atmosphere (or don’t add more GHG than what the Earth can absorb).
Let’s try to understand what Net-Zero is and how we can reach it using a bathtub example:
The water inside the tub represents the existing level of GHG in the atmosphere
The water inflow represents the extra GHG that humans keep pouring in
The water outflow represents the GHG that the Earth manages to absorb and remove from the atmosphere via forests, oceans, and so on.
Scientists have estimated a remaining “carbon budget”, which is the maximum amount of GHG that we, as humans, can add to the bathtub (atmosphere) before it most likely warms the planet beyond the 1.5°C limit. If you are curious, that is 500 gigatonnes of CO2. Under our current emissions levels, this means that we have 10 years to reach Net-Zero. If we start reducing our emissions now (by ~3.5% each year), we might be able to push that deadline until 2050.
And, at present, the net-zero equation remains unsolved (even if all current net-zero commitments and national climate pledges were fulfilled). And execution will be challenging, especially with a growing population coupled with the need for economic growth and a balanced transition (i.e. how do we do so without increasing energy prices).
So, how do we get it done?
Reducing the human inflow of GHG:
Understanding baselines, setting science-based targets and commitments
Deploying and reallocating capital from high-emission to low-emission assets (9.3Tn$/ year as per McKinsey estimates)
Investing in new technologies that reduce the “green premium” gap (i.e. the price difference between high-emissions and low-emissions products)
Enhancing the outflow of GHG:
Protecting and enhancing our planet’s capacity to absorb GHG through reforestation & conservation activities
Capturing carbon from the atmosphere through technologies such as Direct Air Capture (DAC)
Every challenge comes with incredible opportunities. And no challenge is as significant as Net-Zero. Let’s embrace the opportunity.
Impact stories
Aviation industry goes Net-Zero. United Nations body has agreed to a long-term aspirational goal for aviation of net-zero emissions by 2050, despite challenges from China and Russia, as countries aligned overwhelmingly with airlines amid pressure to curb pollution from flights.
Crowdcube to allow clean-tech companies to grow through “the crowd”. Those consumers who can afford to align their spending with their values are doing so in increasing numbers. And if they aren’t happy with being passive consumers, now Crowdcube allows them to take that support to the next level and become active players in the success of clean-tech companies.
One quote
It is not the strongest of the species that survives, not the most intelligent that survives. It is the one that is the most adaptable to change.
~ Charles Darwin
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