Copenhagen must build the road to a sustainable global energy future
In February, Stavros Dimas, European Commissioner responsible for the environment, delivered an address to EU Sustainable Energy Week 2009, in which he impressed upon delegates the importance of the imminent Copenhagen United Climate Agreement
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– described as: “the world’s last chance to bring climate change under control before it is too late.” PES is proud to reprint the Commissioner’s crucial keynote speech in full…
Firstly, I should thank Andris Piebalgs for inviting me to participate in the Energy Week, the theme of which this year is sustainable energy, which logically brings together the climate and energy challenges.
The International Energy Agency rightly stressed in its World Energy Outlook for 2008 that “current trends in energy supply and consumption are patently unsustainable – environmentally, economically and socially.”
Accordingly, it has drawn very clear recommendations: Policy action is urgently needed to ensure secure energy supplies and, at the same time, curtail rising emissions of greenhouse gases. A global energy revolution needs to be launched to foster energy efficiency and thereby enhance energy security while significantly contributing to the fight against climate change.
