How electricity is changing, country by country

illuminem summarizes for you the essential news of the day. Read the full piece on The New York Times or enjoy below:

🗞️ Driving the news: Despite the rapid growth of wind and solar power over the past two decades, global demand for electricity has outpaced these clean energy sources
•  The gap between demand and supply of renewable energy has led to increased reliance on coal- and gas-burning generation, pushing up carbon emissions at a critical time for addressing global warming

🔭 The context: In many developing countries like China and India, where economic growth necessitates massive energy production, fossil-fueled power generation is growing at a rapid pace
• Even in industrialized nations, the transition away from fossil fuels is not occurring swiftly enough to meet the 1.5C  goal

🌍 Why it matters for the planet: The rise in fossil-fuel power in developing countries poses a dilemma between economic growth and global emission reduction goals
• This underscores the urgent need for solutions that simultaneously support development and environmental sustainability

⏭️ What's next: A crucial topic at the upcoming COP28 summit will focus on the pace of renewable energy deployment, especially while maintaining sustainable development for poor countries

💬 One quote: "When you look at lifecycle costs, renewables are by far more cost-competitive than any fossil-fueled generation, but the upfront cost is a barrier." (Faran Rana, International Renewable Energy Agency)

📈 One stat: Wind turbines and solar panels generated 22% of the European Union’s electricity last year, up from less than 1% two decades ago; in the United States, this figure was 15%

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