Energy is at the core of human prosperity. It is in the food that sustains us, the fire that warms us, and the fuel that propels us. Energy eradicates poverty, enables international trade, launches missions to outer space, and brings our families closer together. Energy is the ability to do. And to continue building a better world together, we need to transition from abundant carbon-based energy to abundant carbon-free energy on a global scale.
The necessary speed and scale of the clean energy transition are unprecedented for humanity. There has never been a more daunting challenge or compelling reason to succeed. And despite our best intentions, efforts, and policies, global emissions are clearly on track to increase by 2050.
A successful energy transition would eliminate emissions altogether while decreasing land, mineral, and labor intensity per unit of energy produced. It would provide more energy to more people in more places while preserving our limited ecological, human, and financial resources. It would accomplish more with less; we only need to look down to find one of the most compelling answers to this challenge.