Energizing Resilience — the role of Renewable Energy in green recovery packages
Dealing with the COVID-19 crisis has proven an unprecedented challenge for humanity. If we want to come out of it more resilient better prepared for future crises of global scale, we need to invest into self-sufficient, decentralised, inclusive and sustainable solutions to leave no one behind.
By Anna Skowron
“We must resist the temptation to revert to or ramp up polluting industries as part of a plan to create jobs. Doing so will ultimately only lead to similar global challenges. We need to learn from this crisis and acknowledge the root causes of the COVID-19 pandemic — our unsustainable relationship with nature.” — Dr. Jeanne d’Arc Mujawamariya, Minister of the Environment of Rwanda during the Petersburg Dialogue 2020
Fossil fuels have long been damaging the immune system of our planet. From outdoor air pollution due to heavy street congestions, over indoor air pollution through the use of coal or wood-stoves, to deforestation for the sake of exploiting new fossil fuel reserves to increasing damaging CO2 emissions to a level far above what the planet can absorb, the list is long.
We currently experience how interconnected our behaviour, and consumption patterns are with the environment surrounding us. The loss of habitat and the subsequent closer interactions between humans and animals have probably led to the current health crisis threatening everyone and maybe having long-lasting impacts on the way we life.
Most of us are at a stage where we realise that our societies are not nearly as resilient as we thought they would be. Casting doubts on many of our lifestyle choices of the past, as our economies are facing an unprecedented recession.
Energizing resilient societies
In response, governments around the world are preparing recovery packages to build societies and economies back better. We are talking about trillions to be put into economies to recover from the devastating impacts of this pandemic and come back more resilient to such threats. This should include strengthening our ability to cope with similar health crisis by providing free and stable health care services, free education, strengthening our ability to cope with crises — reduce vulnerability, manage risks and adapt to changes — induced economic downturns, re-storing our planet’s ecosystems to a level less prone to accelerate zoonotic diseases and extreme weather events, as well as building inclusive societies which leave no one behind.
As decision makers are discussing the way forward, we need to ensure those trillions are being directed towards more sustainable investments to increase said resilience, to support those most in need of assistance right now.
Time is of the essence here.
To build back stronger, we now must invest into global-scale deployment of Renewable Energy — we need to energize resilience. Despite being hit by the economic down-turn as well, mostly through supply chain disruptions and staying-at-home policies reducing available work force, preliminary insights suggest that the renewable energy sector is comparatively stable. Especially smaller projects have seen a significant boom in some parts of the world like in Germany, as people are looking to increase their energy security through localised energy supply, by reducing disruption risks.
And what’s more, renewables can play a major role in our efforts to increase resilience, if we choose to direct the trillions to foster a resilient and sustainable energy system which benefits the people and supports the needs of the most vulnerable who are hit the strongest by the raging pandemic.
There are very good reasons to invest more into renewable energy
1. Renewables support health care. In many rural regions in the Global South, solar home and decentralised energy systems are now the backbone to keep essential services online. Hospitals are struggling in many regions of the Amazon rainforest for instance to keep up with the increased demand for sick care (F. Charner, I. Soares, May 8 2020, CNN). If, in this situation, energy access isn’t stable, it might mean the difference between death and live for some people. Having renewable energy installations can help to make the difference and ensure stable energy supply (World Future Council & Brot für die Welt, 2018)
2. Solar irrigation pumps can increase local agricultural produce and shorten food supply chains. In the aftermath of COVID-19, solar irrigation pumps could support farmers in Bangladesh in quickly building up more resilient food supply chains for a lower price than diesel powered irrigation pumps could. That is, because solar irrigation pumps have no additional and continuing costs for fossil fuels. Further, Bangladesh has immense solar power, likely more than needed for current irrigation needs (Teske, Morris, Nagrath 2019: 100% Renewable Energy for Bangladesh — Access to renewable energy for all within one generation). Therefore, cold storage systems could therefore be powered by excess energy provided through the solar irrigation pumps, increasing available agricultural produce (Bright Green Energy Foundation 2019).
3. And they create comparatively more jobs along the whole value chain as fossil fuels. In Kenya and Tanzania the informal sector, is an essential part of economic activities with many people in lower income households relying on its services for food, consumption goods and others. The sector is also an important source of income (Quartz Africa, April 4 2020). But now, this sector is on the verge of vanishing. This is already affecting thousands of people who have lost their source of income. The situation does not look better in other parts of the world. Many people have lost their jobs, or are working part-time.
Many studies suggest that renewables have a positive effect on job growth along the whole value chain for all levels of workers. By 2050, up to 42 million people could work globally in the RE sector, four times more than today (IRENA 2020). Similar seems to hold true when counting job potential on the country level: some estimates suggest that Indian RE jobs could employ five times more people by 2050 than the entire fossil-fuel sector today (Kuldeep, Koti et al. 2019). COVID-19 recovery programs should thus include potential job gains when deciding on sectoral support.
4. They increase energy security and increase savings from fossil fuel imports. Many countries in the Global South have to import a large share of their energy demand, despite being rich in renewable energy resources. To avoid paying for fossil fuels which are being subject to volatile price developments and perverse subsidies; those countries can strengthen their balance sheets by using national renewable energy resources. The fossil fuel savings are often even high enough to finance a substantial amount of the investments needed to go 100% renewable energy (Brot für die Welt & World Future Council, 2020).
5. And renewable energy has less price fluctuations. In addition to COVID-19, we currently see fossil fuel prices drop to below zero as a result of a price war (S. Tobben 20 April 2020, Bloomberg). Such price volatilities have been hitting the fossil fuel sector from time to time and dramatically affect us all, especially oil-producing economies, making us vulnerable and dependent. Renewable energy systems can produce electricity at much more stable prices than any fossil-fuel based energy generation, preventing strong energy price fluctuations.
Standing in solidarity
All in all, investing a significant share of COVID-19 recovery packages into renewable energy deployment is a win-win strategy for resilience and economic growth by improving health services, securing food supply, improving job and energy security, saving money from fossil fuel imports and more.
Now it’s up to governments to choose this path into a more resilient future without leaving anybody behind. Countries and regions of the Global North, such as the EU, Germany, Sweden, Norway and others should place particular attention to leave no one behind. As the crisis continues, many countries become increasingly inward-looking while struggling to contain the pandemic. But can national policy making truly deal with a crisis of global scale? Are we not too easily forgetting those who are less fortunate in their options of dealing with this crisis?
To stand together in loyalty and globally built back better, the EU and others should put efforts in energizing resilience in the Global South as well. There are options they can implement starting today already (Global Renewables Congress, 2020):
Relief measures
- Provide immediate financial assistance (e.g. loans, short-time working benefits) to RE industry to avoid project cancellations and delays in supply chain
Recovery measures
- Embed recovery packages into broader green development strategies of the Global South
- Identify solutions for low-income households and vulnerable countries and groups most vulnerable to the impacts of this crisis (e.g. people living in energy poverty, people without access to basic food services, sanitation or health care)
- Support technologies such as solar irrigation pumps and solar home systems to strengthen rural economic activities
- Provide financial assistance and develop supportive frameworks for emerging technologies (green hydrogen, offshore-wind) across the globe
- De-risk renewable energy projects in Global South countries, by providing central bank and government backed green bonds
- Assess potential job gains from RE sector and provide necessary support to realise those (e.g. financial assistance, training and re-skilling of workforce measures)
Reform measures
- Strengthen support for localised energy solutions to maximise benefit for the people and build capacities
