WATERLOO, ON, Feb. 19, 2012 /PRNewswire/ - Imagine a world with too much
energy... clean energy. How different would our human civilization be
with fewer energy limitations - less risk of climate change, no peak
oil, and more renewable ways to provide power to an exploding global
population?
But, this is not our present scenario. Today's energy needs are met
largely by high-carbon sources and inefficient technologies. But, is
there a better way? How could we use the latest scientific knowledge to
best prepare ourselves for a lower carbon, more electrified future?
To explore these questions, the Waterloo Global Science Initiative
(WGSI) assembled a multinational, interdisciplinary and
multigenerational group in June 2011 for the Equinox Summit: Energy 2030. Together, these pioneering scientists, policy advisors, entrepreneurs
and tomorrow's leaders took a fresh approach, focusing on what science
and technology can deliver to tackle our global energy challenges.
Building on the initial outputs of their June collaborations,
participants developed the Equinox Blueprint: Energy 2030 - a detailed view of the highest impact energy technologies, with a set
of implementation strategies; a roadmap to a cleaner and more
sustainable energy future.
Download the Equinox Blueprint: Energy 2030, now available at: http://wgsi.org/content/equinox-blueprint-energy-2030
Five technological strategies and implementation steps include:
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Energy storage technologies to enable renewable electricity generation
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Enhanced geothermal, tapping into the Earth's heat using techniques we've already mastered
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Advanced nuclear reactors for enhanced safety, utilizing inexhaustible resources (recycled
uranium, thorium, and high level wastes) to close the fuel cycle
-
Off-grid electrification using flexible solar cells and self-sustaining micro-grids
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Smart cities and electric transport for a global future dominated by urban living
"The Equinox Summit: Energy 2030 was a very different sort of
collaboration, emphasizing dialogue between science, policy, industry,
and the leaders of 2030," says Professor Jatin Nathwani, the Equinox
Summit's Scientific Advisor and Executive Director of the Waterloo
Institute for Sustainable Energy (WISE) at the University of Waterloo.
"The multinational, multigenerational group arrived at a fresh
approach, stepping away from political stalemates towards a
science-driven, solutions-based strategy. They offer pragmatic next
steps for a global energy transition to take shape."
"The Equinox Blueprint: Energy 2030 gives readers an informed look at
emerging energy technologies and a clean energy future that is within
our global reach," says Aaron Leopold, Equinox Summit Forum member and
Director of Environment and Sustainable Development at the
Global Governance Institute in Brussels. "We hope the knowledge
presented in the Blueprint will help realign the global energy dialogue
in a positive, collaborative direction, and motivate readers to
accelerate efforts to achieve clean, sustainable energy for all."
About WGSI
Founded in 2009, the non-profit Waterloo Global Science Initiative
(WGSI) is a partnership between Perimeter Institute for Theoretical
Physics and the University of Waterloo. Located in Waterloo, Ontario,
Canada, WGSI aims to present highly focused international conferences
that can advance dialogue and catalyze the long-range thinking
necessary for scientific and technological solutions of the future.
SOURCE Waterloo Global Science Initiative (WGSI)
Image with caption: "Equinox Summit participants release the Equinox Blueprint: Energy 2030 on February 19, 2012 - a science-driven roadmap for a cleaner, electrified future. (CNW Group/Waterloo Global Science Initiative (WGSI))". Image available at: http://photos.newswire.ca/images/download/20120219_C4794_PHOTO_EN_10173.jpg
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