© Andrii Yalanskyi / Shutterstock.com

Global efforts to reduce energy demand

At the last G20 Leaders’ Summit, which took place on 9–10 September 2023 in New Delhi, India, the leaders of the world’s biggest economies agreed to pursue tripling renewable energy capacity globally. And while recognising the important role of energy efficiency, no agreement was reached on a similar target to reduce energy demand as the leaders only took note of the Voluntary Action Plan on Doubling the rate of Energy Efficiency Improvement by 2030, developed by the International Energy Agency (IEA). The Action Plan repeats what is already mentioned in the Versailles Statement: The Crucial Decade for Energy Efficiency, issued in June 2023, which is supported by the European Union, the African Union and over 50 countries, including two-thirds of the G20 membership (all except China, India, Mexico, South Korea, Russia, Saudi Arabia and South Africa).

The doubling of energy efficiency target is actually inspired by the IEA’s Net Zero Emissions by 2050 (NZE) scenario, which explicitly looks at both the technological improvements and sufficiency measures needed to achieve the objective of reducing total final energy consumption to 337 exajoules by 2050. This is quite ambitious and would mean a reduction of energy consumption by about a quarter of projected energy demand by mid-century. In the Versailles Statement the sufficiency concept is firmly recognised: “Ambitious actions should be taken by every country across all sectors, (…) to lead to an acceleration in overall global energy efficiency progress and to reduce energy demand, where possible. Governments should consider the implementation of effective policy packages that may include measures related to behaviour change, sufficiency measures, and technological improvements such as digitalisation and decarbonised heating.”

Nevertheless, much more is possible, and scientists have developed alternative scenarios and pathways, such as the Low Energy Demand (LED) scenario and the On Earth Climate Model that foresee total final energy consumption to be reduced to between 245 and 280 EJ by 2050.

It will obviously be crucial that action to limit and reduce energy demand should not infringe on people’s rights to access affordable, reliable and modern energy services as provided in the Sustainable Development Goals.

Hence the importance of ensuring an equitable energy demand reduction approach. Such an approach should be based on capping the energy use of the top global consumers. As a recent European study indicated, capping the energy use of the top 10 or 20 percent of consumers could result in savings that are more than 10 times the increase needed to provide all Europeans with basic access to energy services.

In support for a strong call for more ambition on energy efficiency and energy sufficiency targets and policies, CAN International agreed on a new position calling for substantial additional action to tackle energy consumption:

Support a substantial improvement in energy savings and energy conservation by both decreasing energy intensity and reducing wasteful energy demand, in an equitable way, including strong and binding energy efficiency legislation in all countries in next years whilst ensuring safe, clean, reliable and affordable access to energy services for all and tackling energy overconsumption by the rich, with the aim of reducing total final energy demand by at least a quarter by 2050 compared to today.

Wendel Trio

In this issue

Low energy vision for the European region

The CLEVER scenario, a Collaborative Low Energy Vision for the European Region, is an energy transition scenario that follows a “sufficiency – efficiency – renewables” approach.

Editorial: EU climate target still not adapted to climate reality

On 8 September, the UN once again issued a report showing how governments are failing to take adequate action to implement the promises they made in the Paris Agreement. The so-called Synthesis Report on the Technical Dialogue from the First Global Stocktake showed how governments are good at making ambitious collective commitments but fail to take the right action at home to turn these collective pledges into a reality.

Denmark’s bold move to promote plant-based eating

The Danish government allocates around 11 million euros annually to a fund for plant-based foods. Its aim is to make plant-based diets accessible and appealing to everyone.

Peeking down from space to catch air pollution

When you think about satellites or NASA, you probably think about the universe, black holes, planets, and galaxies far away. But when NASA’s new project, MAIA, is launched in collaboration with the Italian Space Agency next year it will be pointed towards us on Mother Earth and the pollution we have created.

Arsenic in air, cancer risks and background levels

Humans are exposed to inorganic arsenic in drinking water, soil and the air, and to organic arsenic compounds, especially in fish and shellfish. Arsenic occurs in the air bound to particles, mainly in the fine particle fraction, and consists almost exclusively of the more toxic form of inorganic arsenic (As III and As V).

European Parliament votes on air quality

Although the Environment Committee had agreed on WHO alignment from the year 2030, a compromise proposal was presented to the European Parliament that aimed instead at 2035.

New steps towards banning high-carbon advertising

Last year hundreds of thousands of people signed up to support the idea of a ban on fossil fuel ads and sponsorships in the EU, such as the existing one on tobacco advertising.

Reviewed Gothenburg Protocol calls for revision

Under the UNECE Convention on Long-range Transboundary Air Pollution (LRTAP) the Gothenburg Protocol has been reviewed in terms of effectiveness.

Unexpected CO₂ movements at pioneering Norwegian CCS sites

The CO₂ in the pioneering Norwegian CCS projects has moved in an unexpected way, says a recent IEEFA study. This raises questions about the feasibility and economy of large-scale CO₂ storage.

IED vote: EU Parliament rejects key proposals to curb emissions

MEPs agreed to improve emission reporting, but sided with the industry and farm lobby instead of taking action to protect citizens’ health and the environment.

Agrivoltaic solutions show positive performance in combating heatwaves

In the face of heatwaves and growing concerns about water scarcity, Sun'Agri, a French agrivoltaics specialist, has published insights on the positive impact of temperature regulation, water resource management and crop yields under agrivoltaic installations.

New Approaches to Offshore Wind Conflict Management

Effective ways to address conflicts are needed as the targets for the Baltic Sea offshore wind development are 22.5 GW by 2030, 34.6 GW by 2040, and 46.8 GW by 2050. At the moment, the Baltic Sea has 2.2 GW.

Shift to plant-based foods could halt forest reduction

A recent study has assessed the potential impacts of a global shift from livestock products to plant-based alternatives. The findings indicate that such a shift could have profound positive effects on the global food system and the environment.

Ambitious solar venture in Lithuania and Latvia

A Danish renewable energy company is set to construct a 65 MW solar facility in Anyksciai, Lithuania, with the capacity to provide clean energy for approximately 24,000 households.

Unlocking Europe’s building revolution

Buildings account for as much as 40 per cent of the EU’s overall energy consumption, with 75 per cent of these structures classified as inefficient.

Ocean carbon dioxide removal (OCDR) – high hopes for false solutions

Ocean Carbon Dioxide Removal (OCDR) is a range of strategies meant to remov carbon dioxide (CO2) from the atmosphere through leveraging the capacity of the oceans.

The importance and role of forests in Poland

A varity of forest types in Poland play an important role in the country's ecosystem and cultural heritage.

Poland is home to a variety of forest types, which cover an area of nearly 9.3 million hectares and account for 29.6% of the country’s total land area. These forests play an important role in the country’s ecosystem, economy and cultural heritage. The forests are dominated by coniferous species, which together cover 76.6% of the area. These include pine, larch, spruce and fir. Deciduous species appear on 23.4% of the area.

Main menu

Global efforts to reduce energy demand

In this issue

Low energy vision for the European region

Editorial: EU climate target still not adapted to climate reality

Denmark’s bold move to promote plant-based eating

Peeking down from space to catch air pollution

Arsenic in air, cancer risks and background levels

European Parliament votes on air quality

New steps towards banning high-carbon advertising

Reviewed Gothenburg Protocol calls for revision

Unexpected CO₂ movements at pioneering Norwegian CCS sites

IED vote: EU Parliament rejects key proposals to curb emissions

Agrivoltaic solutions show positive performance in combating heatwaves

New Approaches to Offshore Wind Conflict Management

Shift to plant-based foods could halt forest reduction

Ambitious solar venture in Lithuania and Latvia

Unlocking Europe’s building revolution

Ocean carbon dioxide removal (OCDR) – high hopes for false solutions

The importance and role of forests in Poland

Publications

Food for Thought

Northern forests, climate change and the UNFCCC

EU climate targets aligned with the Paris agreement’s 1.5°C objective

Baltic Sea Offshore Wind Collaborative-Learning project

Air pollution in Europe and children’s health

Climate Change: A Himalayan Odessey

No further discussion needed. The agreed global goal is to limit temperature rise to 1.5°C

Fossil-free electricity 2021

What we do

Air pollution

Climate Change

Policy initiatives

Do Your Bit!