From new jobs to cheap power, community renewables show a better future is possible

(Context, 20 Mar 2023) A just transition away from fossil fuels and to community-centered solar and wind energy is the way to deal with climate change.

The IPCC’s 6th Assessment Synthesis Report released this week summarizes what we already knew: that the climate crisis, whose visibility has grown more pronounced over every season, is unequivocally happening.

Its root cause? Humanity’s addiction to fossil fuels. Every year that we put off a swift, just transition into a decarbonized economy is a year that we will never get back.

But a better world is possible, and in fact it’s already here.

Over the last decade, renewable energy has become more affordable and more accessible. The global energy crisis is driving a sharp acceleration in installations of renewable power, with total capacity growth worldwide set to almost double in the next five years to account for over 90% of global electricity expansion.

This increase is 30% higher than the amount of growth that was forecast just a year ago, and would see renewables overtake coal as the largest source of electricity generation. This keeps the possibility of limiting global warming to 1.5 °C alive, and highlights how quickly change is possible when accompanied by political will.

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Context, 20 Mar 2023: From new jobs to cheap power, community renewables show a better future is possible