Presentation :
"By the year 2030, cities are expected to represent three-quarters of global energy consumption. This presents profound challenges—how to provide energy to all and combat energy poverty? The World Energy Council’s 2010 report Energy and Urban Innovation argues that the answers lie in shaping the rapid growth of cities in emerging countries, and reshaping existing “rich” cities, so as to curb both greenhouse gas emissions and local, energy-related pollution. To meet these energy challenges, both technical and policy actions are needed—and must be taken together.
Using in-depth urban case studies (cities are drawn from both North and South, including Tokyo, Mexico City, Delhi, Toronto, Shanghai, London, the Paris agglomeration, and the San Francisco Bay Area), the report examines the growth, development, and energy-linked issues of large cities, assesses the potential and costs of the innovative urban technologies for reducing energy consumption and/or carbon emissions that are currently available, and goes on to develop concepts for a secure and sustainable energy supply and distribution system, including transportation.
Finally, the report recommends that sustainability initiatives be part of a coherent policy framework, and regulations be based on long-term and stable objectives. Policy “packages” are needed, which combine technical, institutional, policy, and financial measures. In conclusion, as the WEC report demonstrates, the energy challenges faced by large cities can, and must, be met by joint action, at many different levels—across government and society; across technology and policy solutions."
>> Read the report online
