Energy and Society: At a Tipping Point

The world seems to be poised on the edge of a precipice, careening toward an unsustainable level of carbon emissions that is accelerating the pace of climate change, a factor that imperils our economic well-being and our very existence. With the best of intentions, twentieth century technology, policies, and financial instruments have been unable to address the challenges, setting up the mitigation of climate change as a Faustian bargain between economics and sustainability. We believe that new and rapidly evolving twenty-first century technologies with steep learning rates, high modularity, and the ability to scale rapidly are offering us a unique opportunity to reimagine the world we live in. We are at the cusp of a fundamental transformation in our lives, and many things we take for granted will need to be revisited. We believe that deep decarbonization should be an outcome of doing things that are economically the right thing to do, and where minor tweaks to policy can initiate the virtuous cycle. For the first time, there is an opportunity that these new technologies will be good for our wallet, and also for the planet! Done right, we feel there is a good chance that this can also be accomplished in a timely manner.