Technology and the climate solution

Energy makes the world go round. I know there are those who would say it is money that does so, but I believe it is energy, because without energy it is difficult to have the kind of economic growth that spreads prosperity.

It is up to us to do something about the huge numbers of the world's people who live in hunger, without access to clean water and sanitation, and without access to electricity. We also need to do something about climate change, of that there is no doubt.

The link between these two issues is energy. Electricity will be needed to purify and deliver a water supply, to treat wastewater, and to grow and transport food. Yet we cannot allow the increased demand for electricity that the world's burgeoning population will create to mean an increase in greenhouse gas emissions as that would be catastrophic for our climate. A move to a high-growth, low-carbon economy is essential.

Making better use of the low-carbon energy technologies we already have is a good place to start, as is being more energy efficient, but this won't be enough. By 2050, 85 percent of the world's population will live in what we now call developing countries, creating huge energy demand in those nations. So, if we are to improve the lives of these people, they too will need access to the technologies that provide low-carbon energy.

These technologies will be expensive to roll-out around the world, and some countries will struggle to access them. But countries and organizations that propose compulsory licensing of technology are misguided. They fail to understand that merely technology is not enough.

Business knows about technology diffusion and deployment and has a wealth of experience to draw on. Companies are constantly transferring technology, between branches of their own company, and to their customers (public and private) around the world by selling them their products and services. And from that experience business has learnt that much more needs to be done beyond simply buying and installing a new technology. Getting the supporting conditions right can be costly.

This is where governments can act if they want to attract technology investment. Improving roads, water supplies, national electricity grids, education and political stability all have “pulling” power for investors. On a global level, financial incentives and mechanisms will be needed to encourage funding of projects in developing countries.

As well, unprecedented levels of public-private partnerships will be necessary if we are to get the breakthrough technologies we will need to fight climate change. Business alone will not be able to bear the cost of developing and bringing to market technologies such as carbon capture and storage, biofuels and next-generation nuclear. Cooperation will be the key if we are to get these kinds of technologies up and running.

Innovative, breakthrough technologies could help save our climate, but only if it makes sound business sense to invest in them. A strong intellectual property rights regime will be crucial if business is to invest in high-risk, high-cost new ideas.

There are some who advocate a weakening of IPR regimes because they see them as a barrier to the diffusion of low-carbon technologies around the world. I believe they are wrong.

Strong intellectual property rights encourage investment in innovation – in finding solutions – because they protect the right of the inventor, or the investor, to profit from his or her work by granting exclusive rights for a limited period. By requiring inventors to disclose the details of their inventions in exchange for protection, patent systems promote the broad dissemination of knowledge, from which further innovations may grow.

Successful deployment of technology will only happen if we get the right policies in place now. Policies that hinder investment will leave the world without the technologies it requires to meet the climate challenge. And, if that happens, then we will leave future generations with a dangerously warming world.

Comments

[Bjoer U Syren]

It seems that we are getting some better focus on environment impact on the globe and the effect our consumtion has now and for the coming future on the climate change. The point is though to get business to focus and those who already are focusing assistance to grow in the near future to meet targets.
Green and Clean Technology should be high on the agenda for Investors, since this is suatainable and long term revenue streams as well for them.