Washington, 7 April 2015 - The UN Under-Secretary-General and UN Environment Programme (UNEP) Executive Director, Achim Steiner delivered a keynote address on renewable energy at The Atlantic Council-hosted meeting in Washington D.C., on 1 April 2015.
Mr. Steiner's address highlighted the results of the Global Trends in Renewable Energy Investments report, released the day before by the Frankfurt School-UNEP Collaborating Centre and Bloomberg New Energy Finance. His address was followed by a moderated discussion with H.E Richard Morningstar, Founding Director of the Atlantic Council's Global Energy Center.
Mr. Steiner emphasized the unprecedented rate of growth of renewables over the last decade, while stressing that global projections of renewable energy growth are consistently underestimated, and actually grew by 17 per cent to US $270 billion last year. Over 100 GW of generating capacity added around the world made 2014 the best year ever for newly installed capacity.
The International Energy Agency's (IEA) moderate scenarios forecast the share of electricity produced from renewables to reach 57-71 per cent in 2050. The continuing decline in technology costs of solar and wind power have contributed to this positive projection.
Mr. Steiner highlighted that, while fossil fuel economies are likely to rely on centralized generating facilities, those countries fully utilizing renewable energy will not be influenced by the size or location of any generating facility, making distribution of energy feasible and reversing the energy paradigm.
UNEP's Executive Director also emphasized the vital role of UN Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon in promoting sustainability through initiatives such as Sustainable Energy for All and his role in guiding the development of the Sustainable Development Goals, to come into effect later this year.
Participants concluded that 2015 should be a catalyst for a global shift away from a carbon-intensive economic system towards a global economy with zero net emissions and a future where energy will no longer be a restraint on development, but rather a distinct opportunity
