Energy Efficiency vs. Energy Poverty: The Fight Begins at Rio+20

Above image courtesy of Foundation Rural Energy Services/Sustainable Energy for All.

“Until I became a freshman in college in 1963, I had to study and live under this dim smoky kerosene lamp. The candles I used only to prepare for examinations. Candles were considered to be expensive for me and for most of the people.”

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki Moon shared his poignant story about how lack of electricity affected his life at an event in Washington, D.C. in April 2012.  While access to affordable energy has improved tremendously since Ban’s college years, this bleak reality still persists for one in five people who lack access to electricity and almost 3 billion people who rely on wood, coal, charcoal or animal waste for cooking and heating.

UN's 3 Major Sustainability Goals

Taking action on the issue of energy poverty, Ban is leading the Sustainable Energy for All (SEFA) initiative to achieve three complementary goals by 2030:

• Ensure universal energy access to modern energy services
• Double the global rate of improvement in energy efficiency
• Double the share of renewable energy in the global energy mix

Rio+20 Conference to Advance SEFA  Goals

To support SEFA's goals and help bring an end to energy poverty, Ban summoned a high-level group that includes global leaders from business, finance, government and civic society.  The group plans to catalyze commitments and form partnerships, which will be announced at the UN Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio+20) in Rio de Janerio June 20-22, 2012.

Image: Dr. Kandeh Yumkella, Director-General of the UN Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) and Co-Chair of the high-level group was also the keynote speaker at Alliance to Save Energy’s 2012 EE Global Conference where he called energy efficiency a source of “prosperity”

Path to Doubling Energy Efficiency by 2030

Among the three major objectives of SEFA, improving energy efficiency has the fastest impact on saving money, conserving energy, improving business profit margins, and innovating technology to help people live comfortably.

According to a SEFA factsheet on improving energy efficiency...

• Reducing energy use can result in estimated financial savings of up to $325 billion annually until 2030.
• Investing $170 billion annually in energy efficiency can produce energy savings of up to $900 billion per year.  Every single dollar spent on energy efficiency for home appliances, industrial equipment and buildings reduces energy, according to the International Energy Agency.
• Adopting minimum standards for energy-efficient technology could reduce projected global energy consumption by buildings and industry by 14% — equivalent to avoiding almost 1,300 mid-sized power plants.

How You Can Help Double Energy Efficiency by 2020

“I really count on your support. This is not only the government – I count on the business community, civil societies. Sometimes civil society has a bigger power than I as a secretary general.” – UN Secretary-General Ban Ki Moon, April 2012.

• Support energy-efficient technology by using our video tips on lighting and fuel-efficiency.
• Show off on Facebook and tell your friends how energy efficiency is helping you slash your energy bills with OPower’s social energy app.
• Join the conversation by exploring social media activities leading up to Rio+20. On Twitter, follow #energy4all, #FutureWeWant and #socialgood.
• Set an energy efficiency goal for your organization or collaborate with other organizations by making a public commitment to SEFA. For ideas, check out this list of high impact opportunities.
• Read the Alliance's call for improved energy efficiency education.

Image of UN Secretary -General Ban Ki Moon is courtesy of Norway UN (New York).

By Sumayal Shrestha