US Election: 1 Day Left | The Opening Trade 11/04
A flurry of polls released Sunday show Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump remain poised for a photo finish in this weekâs preside...
Energy Explained
Get the latest as our experts share their insights on global energy policy.
Saudi Arabia’s Renewable Energy Initiatives and Their Geopolitical Implications
Saudi Arabia is experiencing a significant economic transformation under its Vision 2030 plan to reduce the country’s dependence on oil revenues by diversifying its economy. The Saudi government’s...
Podcasts
Hear in-depth conversations with the world’s top energy and climate leaders from government, business, academia, and civil society.
How to Make the Energy Transition More Equitable
Emerging markets and developing economies are set to account for the largest source of emissions growth in the coming decades, according to the International Energy Agency. As population...
Events
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November 12, 2024
• 6:00 pm - 8:30 pm
est
Financing the Energy Transition
Women in Energy and the Columbia Energy Association invite you to gain a deeper knowledge and understanding of energy finance.
Event
• Wang Pavilion, Lerner Hall
In a working paper jointly published by the Center on Global Energy Policy, the Belfer Center at the Harvard Kennedy School and the Norwegian Institute of International Affairs, the authors — including CGEP Inaugural Fellow David Sandalow — explore geopolitical issues that could accompany the widespread deployment of renewable energy technologies. Following an overview of six renewable energy scenarios for the coming decades, the paper outlines seven mechanisms through which renewable energy technologies could shape geopolitics:
- Critical material supply chains: As the transition to renewable energy proceeds, cartels could develop around materials critical to renewable energy technologies including rare earth elements, lithium, cobalt and indium.
- Electric grids: Renewable energy technologies will reshape electric grids, with complex implications for relations among nations.
- Reduced oil and gas demand: To the extent renewable energy technologies and electric vehicles reduce oil and gas demand, they could reshape relations among oil and gas importers and exporters.
- New “resource curse”: The “resource curse” could become less of a factor in oil and gas exporting nations and more important in countries exporting materials critical for renewable energy technologies.
- Avoided climate change: By reducing emissions of heat-trapping gases, renewable energy technologies can reduce the risk of conflict and instability as a result of climate change.
- Energy access: Renewable energy technologies can help provide access to modern energy services to those who now lack it, reducing poverty and associated risks of instability and migration.
- Technology and finance: The ability to exploit renewable energy depends critically on access to technology and finance, giving potential advantages to countries with strong innovation cultures and access to capital.
The paper notes the need for further research on all these topics and concludes by providing options for further analysis.
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Publications
How the Next US President Could Shape Energy and Climate Policy
November’s election for president of the United States will have crucial implications for the nation’s and world’s energy and climate policies.
Blog
by Jason Bordoff, Karen E. Young, Erica Downs, Shayak Sengupta, Gautam Jain, Robert (RJ) Johnston, Ira Joseph, Luisa Palacios, Diego Rivera Rivota, Jonathan Elkind, Anne-Sophie Corbeau & Noah Kaufman • October 15, 2024
Climate of Contempt
Why is the United States struggling to enact policies to reduce carbon emissions? Conventional wisdom holds that the wealthy and powerful are to blame, as the oligarchs and corporations that wield disproportionate sway over politicians prioritize their short-term financial interests over the climate’s long-term health.
Books
by David Spence • September 11, 2024
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