Energy and the Security Dilemma

Abstract

At present, it is difficult to imagine a future when the current reliance upon fossil fuel energy sources are not central to the activities of human societies, their economies and the efforts of governments and other actors to maintain social order. This is especially true for developed states where higher energy requirements support daily life and the extensive networks that maintain social order. The nature of developed states and the affluent lifestyles they support rely upon high rates of energy consumption and expectations of their continued availability such that an ‘abundance of energy is what defines life in industrial nations and distinguishes it from traditional’ societies and lifestyles (Prugh et al., 2008, p. 101). Consequently, it has become important to confront global climate change while also finding and developing sources of energy that are less environmentally harmful. As has been observed by Bill Gates (cited in Mosher, 2011, http://www.wired.com/business/2011/05/bill-gates-energy-tech/) ‘if we don’t have innovation in energy, we don’t have much at all’.