GLOBAL ENERGY

“There is now global knowledge demonstrating that energy systems compatible with sustainable development are possible if we adopt new cleaner fossil fuel technologies, increase energy efficiency and shift to more renewable energy,” said Mark Malloch Brown, Administrator of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). "That's why it's crucial for the Johannesburg Summit to produce concrete action on energy to both address the energy needs of developing countries while mitigating greenhouse gas emissions globally.”

Worldwide, two billion people are without access to electricity, and the same number relies on traditional fuels -- such as firewood, agricultural residues, and dung—for cooking and heating. Over 100 million women spend hours every day gathering firewood, with extra time spent on cooking with poorly vented stoves. These stoves can have the same adverse health impacts as smoking two packs of cigarettes a day. The additional hours also mean that women do not have opportunities for more productive income-generating activities.

Industrialised countries are responsible for the lion's share in greenhouse gas emissions that heat up the atmosphere -- and these gases, such as CO2, mostly stem from burning fossil fuels, hundreds of millions of cars and a energy intensive industry to feed (mostly northern) over-consumption patterns. Oil dependency is projected to grow from 56 percent in 1996 to more than 70 percent by 2010.

The Heinrich Boell Foundation commissioned Öko-Institut (Institute for Applied Ecology) to prepare a paper contributing to a Global Energy Strategy (GES) to be presented at the World Summit in Johannesburg. More about the GES paper.