What is the Energy Transition: Episode Two Just Transition

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, adopted by all United Nations Member States in 2015, provides a shared blueprint for peace and prosperity for people and the planet, now and into the future. At its heart are the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which are an urgent call for action by all countries - developed and developing - in a global partnership. They recognize that ending poverty and other deprivations must go together with strategies that improve health and education, reduce inequality, and spur economic growth – all while tackling climate change and working to preserve our oceans and forests. How is the Energy Transition impacting these challenges?

The 78th Meeting of the United Nations General Assembly was held in New York City in the fall of 2023. ?One of the topics of discussion is how well the world is doing towards meeting the 2030 goals for the 17 Sustainable Development Goals. The progress report is not good. According to a recent report, the impacts of the climate crisis, the war in Ukraine, a weak global economy, and the lingering effects of the COVID-19 pandemic have revealed weaknesses and hindered progress towards the Goals. The report further warns that while lack of progress is universal, it is the world’s poorest and most vulnerable who are experiencing the worst effects of these unprecedented global challenges. It also points out areas that need urgent action to rescue the SDGs and deliver meaningful progress for people and the planet by 2030.

Halfway to the deadline for the 2030 Agenda, the SDG Progress Report; Special Edition shows we are leaving more than half the world behind (again). Progress on more than 50 per cent of targets of the SDGs is weak and insufficient; on 30 per cent, it has stalled or gone into reverse. These include key targets on poverty, hunger, and climate. Unless the world acts now, the 2030 Agenda could become an epitaph for a world that might have been.

In our second episode of the Energy Transition Talk we examine the concept of a Just Transition with Dr. Kelly Sanders and her research student team of Stepp Mayes, McKenna Peplinski, and Andrew Jin. Dr. Kelly Twomey Sanders is an Associate Professor in the University of Southern California’s Sonny Astani Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering. Her research aims to reduce the environmental impacts of providing energy and water, analyze tensions between climate change adaptation and mitigation strategies, and analyze the effects of climate change on energy systems.

She has authored more than two dozen publications and has given dozens of invited talks on topics at the intersection of engineering, science, and policy. Sanders has been recognized in Forbes’ 30 under 30: Today’s disruptors and tomorrow’s brightest stars and MIT Technology Review’s 35 Innovators Under 35 for her contributions to the energy field. After listening to our episode, we are sure you will agree. Her research and commentary have been featured in media outlets such as The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, The Washington Post, Foreign Affairs, WIRED magazine, Forbes, Bloomberg, The Wall Street Journal and Scientific American. Sanders received her B.S. in Bioengineering from the Pennsylvania State University, as well M.S.E and Ph.D. degrees in Mechanical Engineering and Environmental Engineering from the University of Texas at Austin, respectively. She teaches classes related to energy and the environment. Energy Transition Talk is very honored to host Dr. Sanders on our podcast.

An important conversation that we had was about the concept of a just transition. What do we mean by that? According to 2018 IEA World Energy Outlook there are currently 1 billion people in the world – 13% of the total population – with no access to electricity, mostly in Africa and South Asia. In sub-Saharan Africa, it is estimated that approximately 600 million people – 57% of the population – live without electricity, against the 350 million people – representing 9% of the population – who lack access in developing Asia. The UN Agenda for Sustainable Development placed as one of its Goals the achievement of universal energy access by 2030. These are the ones left behind.

If we compare current data to early 2000s, there has been improvement: regions such as East Asia and Latin America have now reached a better energy access thanks to the extension of electricity networks. Similarly, many other developing countries have experienced significant progress. In Indonesia, for example, the electrification rate is almost at 95%, up from 50% in 2000; in Bangladesh, electricity now reaches 80% of the population, up from 20% in 2000; Kenya moved from 8% in 2000 to 73% in 2017; in Ethiopia, electricity now reaches 45% of the population compared with just 5% in 2000. But according to the World Health Organization about 3.2 million people a year still die from respiratory illness related to indoor pollution from cooking with biofuels (wood and dung).

In 2010, World Economic Forum defined energy poverty as the lack of access to sustainable modern energy services and products. To be more precise, it is not only a matter of sustainability: energy poverty can be found in all conditions where there is a lack of adequate, affordable, reliable, quality, safe and environmentally sound energy services to support development. Despite the fact energy is the engine of civilization, nowadays access to adequate and affordable sources is not equally distributed on the planet. Its presence is strongly and constantly intertwined with economic and social development: as a result, poorer countries are those usually equipped with the worst energy services, which contribute to malnourishment, unhealthy living conditions and limited access to education and employment. Insufficient energy usually translates into the impossibility to develop agriculture and manufacturing, thus keeping the poorest countries trapped in a vicious circle: they cannot afford the energy that can drive them out of poverty. https://www.habitat.org/emea/about/what-we-do/residential-energy-efficiency-households/energy-poverty ?

Energy access is not equally distributed around the globe: it is estimated that the almost 3.5 billion with limited access are responsible for less than 10% of the total household final energy demand, while 1 billion people with energy consumption levels at or above European standards is responsible for half of global energy consumption.

Our conversation with Dr. Sanders and her students reveals their work on a local level in the Los Angeles area on the topic of cooling and the link of the energy access to air conditioning. A fact that most of us take for granted but the energy poverty factor demonstrates that this basic level of comfort when summer temperatures are getting hotter is not available for all. But there is good news as well but we all must learn the lessons of the Energy Transition and make it a priority for each one of us. As we focus on the impact that the Energy Transition has on our community, give a thought to those that are being left behind.

Here is the link. Hope you enjoy. Let us know what you think of the podcast.

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