Energy, emissions, and the choice of Boaz

Energy, and how we produce it, is the key to a stable climate. Three quarters of emissions come from energy production. Get energy right, and we’ve broken the back of it. So, the latest Global Energy Review report from the highly regarded International Energy Agency is a vital health check. What’s happening to energy demand? How are we producing it? Does the arc of emissions bend toward zero?

According to the report, the answers to those questions are: one, it’s going up; two, increasingly from renewables; and three, either no or only slowly. Now, I know it’s hard to engage with numbers and percentages. So, here are just two headlines. In 2024, global energy demand rose by 2.2%. And carbon emissions rose by 0.8%. Behind those headlines is a mixed story. On the plus side, most of the growth came from wind and solar energy. In fact, 40% of all energy now comes from low carbon renewables and nuclear. But on the minus side, use of gas, oil and coal also rose, and carbon emissions are still going up, when we need them to be going down (fast).

What are we to make of this? And what should we do about it? As to the first, well, while there are some positives, overall the news isn’t good enough, is it? We’re getting energy right, but not quickly enough. Until we get rid of emissions altogether (not just stop them going up), temperatures are going to keep going up. And, with them, the increasingly volatile weather that’s already worrying our farmers, sea-level rise that’s exercising coastal towns and cities, and all the rest.