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| The current cost of living crisis is causing serious problems for most of us and our economies are quite fragile. This week, the International Monetary Fund “warned European governments against intervening in the region’s worsening energy crisis with broad-based financial support, saying instead that consumers should bear the brunt of higher prices to encourage energy saving and aid the wider shift to green power.” This is very hard line the IMF is taking and it will be interesting if the warning will be heeded. Remember, there is already an approved plan to reduce their gas consumption in the EU by 15% between August 2022 and March 2023, in order to ensure enough gas is in storage for this winter and next. None of this is going to be easy as we prepare for winter.
Many are taking hiking holidays this year. The Gone Goat describes Pashmina’s 18 best hikes in Europe that may interest you. These are “not just ordinary hiking, rather trails that are wild, off-beat and trail-worthy in a part of world that has home to some of the best walking trails where treks weave through history, cascading waterfalls and the most pristine mountains. . . . To beat overtourism, and avoid the intensity of the cities, the hiking trails in Europe are where wearied souls like me and you can allow ourselves to wander a bit, become aligned with our everyday actions, choose who we want to be in this new decade and boost our sensory smells, sights and hearing all at one go.” Let EiD know your hiking experience. To ensure the zero carbon energy transition gains momentum we need a new generation of experts to continue the good work. EiD encourages all young researchers (born after 1987) in energy efficiency and biomass to submit contributions for next year’s Young Energy Researchers Conference as part of World Sustainable Energy Days, February 28-March 3 in Wels, Austria. The deadline for submissions is October 10th. Rod is a member of the scientific committee of the young researchers’ conference. James Lovelock (1919-2022), the nonconformist scientist-inventor, continues to inspire us this week: “What I like about sceptics is that in good science you need critics that make you think: ‘Crumbs, have I made a mistake here?’ If you don’t have that continuously, you really are up the creek. The good sceptics have done a good service, but some of the mad ones I think have not done anyone any favours.” |
Energy in Demand - Sustainable Energy - Rod Janssen 