And that’s a wrap! I leave you with this from António Guterres:

“The fossil fuel age is failing. We are in a new energy era where cheap,clean,abundant energy powers a world rich in economic opportunity. But it won’t happen on its own. Not fast enough. Not fair enough. It is up to us.”

6. Unleash the full force of
finance & drive investment to where it’s needed.

This is a big one! Reform the global financial architecture, address debt, enhance equity financing

A more than fivefold increase in annual clean energy investment needed in emerging economies by 2030.

5. Use trade and investments to supercharge the transition.
-cut tariffs on clean energy
-use South-South cooperation to unlock investment
-modernize investment treaties, starting with Investor-State
Dispute Settlement provisions, which fossil fuel interests are weaponizing to delay the transition

4. Invest in just transitions.

Equity, social protection, education & training for workers. Inclusion of Indigenous Peoples, women, young people. These are the principles that must lead the transition.

It’s a big year for just transition! Learn more: climatenetwork.org/resource/jus...

3. Satisfy growing demand with clean energy.

More communities are getting access to the energy they need. But it’s the data centres that are generating a lot of demand growth.

Today Antonio Guterres called on every major tech firm to power all data centres with 100%
renewables by 2030.

2. Build the energy systems of the 21st century.

For every dollar spent on renewables, just 60 cents goes to grids and storage. These investments need to be on par to build the infrastructure of the future.

1. Use national climate plans to go all out on energy transition.

Countries new climate plans under the Paris climate treaty are due this year. These plans need to build roadmaps for countries to accelerate their transition from fossil fuels to renewable.

So here’s the Secretary-General’s six point plan for the movers and shakers in this audience to double down on clean energy and make the transition faster and fairer:

Meanwhile, 80% of this good good renewable energy growth has happened in OECD countries and China, 10% in Brazil and India, leaving only 10% for the rest of the world.

Africa has some of the best RE potential and the greatest energy access needs in the world yet has only seen 1.5% of this growth.

Fossil fuels are being subsidized by more and more public money while investments shift to renewables and fossil elites convince governments to throw good money after bad. Consumptions subsidies for coal, oil and gas have a 9 to 1 advantage over subsidies to affordable clean energy.

BUT. There’s a big but. Well, a couple.

The transition away from fossil fuels to renewables isn’t fast enough, and it isn’t fair enough.

Fossil fuel elites are buying politicians to maintain business as usual (he said it more tactfully), and RE isn’t reaching all who need it.

Some countries are saving a bunch of money with clean energy. Why? Because it reduces their reliance on expensive volatile fossil fuel markets. Gas prices increased 5x in the UK in 2022 alone!

‪Some countries are making a bunch of money from clean energy. ‬

‪GDP growth from renewables in 2023:‬
‪🇮🇳 India - 5%!‬
‪🇺🇸US - 6%!!‬
‪🇨🇳China - 20%!!!‬
‪🇪🇺EU - 33%!!!!‬
‪(Side note: so depressing not to see 🇨🇦Canada on this list given our wealth of renewables resources) ‬

Cheap renewable energy means better energy access for those who need it, and huge job growth.
In 2023:
👷🏾‍♀️Clean energy jobs reached a total of 34.8 million, of which
16.2 million are in renewables.
💰Clean energy added around USD $320 billion to the global economy,
accounting for 10% of GDP growth

Plummeting costs mean that solar and wind are now the fastest growing sources of electricity in history.
🎯In 2024, renewables made up 92.5% of all new electricity capacity additions and 74% of electricity generation growth.

The room is packed full of ambassadors from all over the world. We start by hearing about how incredibly affordable renewable energy is.
☀️Solar energy is now 41% cheaper than coal, oil, or gas.
💨Onshore wind energy is 53% cheaper than fossil fuels