Energy, Transport and the Environment: Providing Energy Security

Abstract

Growing global demand for energy as well as recent geopolitical and technical concerns and issues have served to move energy security up the policy agenda. At the same time the challenge of stabilising greenhouse gas emissions at “safe” levels remains a clear scientific imperative. It is time to stop ‘polishing the 2050 diamond’ and to take practical steps today towards a lower carbon, secure energy future. Moving to action is more important than ever. We must now take the practical steps available to us that can begin to make a material impact on meeting both climate and energy concerns affordably. Pathways for both transport and power are available to us today that can radically reduce emissions without threatening energy security and at a reasonable cost to consumers. The geopolitical relationships necessary to accelerate progress must also be leveraged to accelerate alignment and convergence towards a coherent set of global energy relationships and markets which enable economic progress and stability.