2.0. Focal
theme and Sub-theme
2.1.
Focal
theme: “Energy: Explore, Harness and Conserve”
Energy is considered as a
crucial input parameter for day to day work and for economic development of a
country. Per capita energy consumption
is one of the key deciding factors of the level of well-being of any society or
for any country. It is also referred through the relationship between economic
growths with energy consumption.
In reality, economic
development of every region or country largely depends on how its energy
requirements are satisfied. Every production process has certain amount of
energy requirement. Hence, availability of quality energy sources is crucial
for overall scientific and technological progress of any country.
Energy is central to
sustainable development and poverty reduction efforts. It affects all aspects
of development - social, economic, and environmental - including livelihoods,
access to water, agricultural productivity, health, population levels,
education and gender-related issues. None of the Millennium Development Goals
(MDGs) can be met without major improvement in the quality and quantity of
energy services in developing countries.
The issue of energy is always
linked to its sources. Nowadays energy sources are categorised as Non-renewable
and Renewable with a large frame of coverage (fig.1)
Such sources are used in
multiple levels and areas, which in reality activate the entire processes of
economy (fig.2)
Here, energy is mainly used
in domestic, agriculture, industry, transport and communication sectors and
they are interlinked. All these energy applications basically provide energy
services.
Such processes are basically effective in a way where energy is input to the technology which produces services as outputs (fig.3). So, efficiency of the technology in use and its purposes to produce services are important which determine the situation of energy sufficiency. In these perspectives, to achieve energy sufficiency and efficiency for suitability each one is interlinked through proper value setting, management principles, technological efficiency with policy measures (fig.4).
In the above perspectives
Sustainable energy issues are reflected as follows:
Sustainable
energy is the sustainable provision of energy that meets
the needs of the present without compromising with the ability of future
generations to meet their needs. Technologies that promote sustainable energy
include renewable energy sources, such as hydroelectricity,
solar
energy, wind energy, wave power, geothermal energy, and tidal power,
and also technologies designed to improve energy efficiency
(http://www.undp.org/content/undp/en/home/ourwork/environmentandenergy/focus_areas/sustainable-energy.html).
Energy efficiency and renewable energy are said to be the twin pillars of sustainable energy.
Some ways in which sustainable energy has been defined are:
·
"Effectively,
the provision of energy that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own
needs. Sustainable Energy has two key components: renewable energy and energy
efficiency."
·
"Dynamic
harmony between equitable availability of energy-intensive goods and services
to all people and the preservation of the earth for future generations."
And, "the solution will lie in finding sustainable energy sources and more
efficient means of converting and utilizing energy."
·
"Any
energy generation, efficiency & conservation source where resources are
available to enable significant portion of energy generation in long term.
·
"Energy
which is replenished within a human lifetime and causes no long-term damage to
the environment.".
·
Energy efficiency remains a
cost effective way of improving the environmental impact of energy use,
increasing security, improving competitiveness and providing affordable services.
("The
Twin Pillars of Sustainable Energy: Synergies between Energy Efficiency and
Renewable Energy Technology and Policy". www.aceee.org.)
Energy sufficiency is some time considered as
normative concept to make differences between need and greed and prefer for the
best. However, the growing concern for climate
change and energy security now means that energy sufficiency is something that
warrants serious consideration. It looks beyond technical energy efficiency
measures and address the challenging issue of curbing consumer demand for
energy services in an ethically acceptable fashion. It also implies a need to
recognize limits and to establish acceptable minimum standards for energy
services. (Derby
From the aforesaid discussion it is clear that to achieve energy efficiency and sufficiency, we have to go for an integrated approach, where Public understanding, initiatives for research and development are some key components to meet the requirement of energy sectors and policy measures may play a critical role (Fig.5).
With reference to the above discussion and taking
consideration of our required initiatives in this era of global climate change challenges, efficient energy use
and replacement of carbon based fuel with non-carbon based fuel are the key
areas by which we can reduce our carbon footprint to a large extent and
undertake some pragmatic measures for mitigation and adaptation of climate
change. It is noteworthy that awareness and understanding in such areas in many
cases encourage us for taking self initiatives for conservation, rational uses
and strategies for enhancing efficiency. Therefore, “Energy: Explore, Harness and Conserve!” has been proposed as
the focal theme for the CSC of
2012 and 2013, with an expectation that young minds will be able to realize the
need, take different initiatives to explore, identify the energy resources and
find ways to harness it, identify approaches to achieve optimum use through
enhancing energy efficiency and energy conservation along with creating
awareness among the masses through their project works.
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