Worldwatch Institute

El 85% de la electricidad sería renovable en el 2030

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Jul 082015

Esto reduciría los precios en 40% respecto a 2010, según informe

ECONOMÍA PERSONAL

| 08 JUL 2015, 12:00 AM

WASHINGTON.- La transición a un sistema eléctrico alimentado por 85% de energías renovables puede reducir el coste medio de la electricidad en la República Dominicana por 40% en 2030 en comparación con 2010, según un informe del Instituto Worldwatch, presentando en el Ministerio de Energía y Minas dominicano.

“Esta vía ambiciosa hasta energías renovables haría más seguro y confiable el suministro de energía de la isla. También crearía hasta 12.500 puestos de trabajo adicionales y reduciría las emisiones de gases de efecto invernadero en el sector eléctrico dominicano a apenas 3 millones de toneladas al año, a la vez que haría más resistente el sector de energía a los impactos del cambio climático y reduciría la contaminación local del aire y del agua”, indica el comunicado de prensa sobre el informe Aprovechamiento de los Recursos de Energía Sostenible de la República Dominicana.

El Ministro de Energía y Minas Antonio Isa Conde; el Viceministro de Energía, Ernesto Vilalta; el Secretario de Estado y Vicepresidente del Consejo Nacional para el Cambio Climático, Omar Ramírez, y otros funcionarios gubernamentales de alto rango se reunieron con Alexander Ochs, Director de Clima y Energía de Worldwatch y director del estudio, para recibir el informe.

Climate and population are linked — but maybe not the way you thought

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Jan 242015

By Robert Engelman and Alexander Ochs, Grist, 24 January 2015

It’s not a topic that comes up in high-level international negotiations on climate change. Yet who would disagree that when individuals and couples use modern contraception to plan childbearing according to a schedule that suits them, they tend to have fewer children than they would otherwise? Could it be that this aspect of family planning, multiplied hundreds of millions of times, might lessen the severity of human-caused climate change and boost societies’ capacity to adapt to it?

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, after all, recently noted that population and economic growth “continue to be the most important drivers of increases in CO2 emissions from fossil fuel combustion.” Not many analysts see “win-win” opportunities in reining in economic growth. Population growth, by contrast, might be slowed as a side effect of efforts that have multiple other benefits — such as education, empowerment of women, and the provision of reproductive health services including safe and effective contraception. And there’sreason to believe that slower population growth also makes societies more resilient to the impacts of climate change already upon us or on the way.

This line of reasoning raises concerns among some groups that are active in climate change advocacy, who argue that linking family planning to climate change amounts to blaming parents of large families in developing countries for a phenomenon caused more by smaller but high-consuming families in industrialized countries. A more pragmatic worry may be the less-than-generous pie of international funding available to address climate change. Should family planning have precedence over renewable energy and direct efforts to adapt to climate change, when the needs are so great and the financial resources to address them are already insufficient? Continue reading »

Bridging the Gap: Family Planning, Rights, and Climate-Compatible Development

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Jan 212015

January 21, 2015 By Benjamin Dills

“There is no magic bullet or solution to resolving climate change quickly,” said the Population Reference Bureau’s Jason Bremner at the Wilson Center on October 28. “Our next 100 years will be far different from the last 100 or the last 1000…and it has become clear that nations will have to pursue many strategies in order to reduce emissions, build resilience, and adapt.” (…)

Climate-compatible development has two complementary goals, said Alexander Ochs of the Worldwatch Institute: to mitigate climate change by reducing greenhouse gas emissions while increasing the capacity of people, communities, and countries to adapt to climate change and extreme weather. (…)

The energy, transport, and climate communities were traditionally separated, said Ochs, but just as they are increasingly working together to curb emissions, the climate, health, and development communities need to do the same. That means creating regular opportunities for dialogue at all levels, from local to international negotiations and the Sustainable Development Goals.

[Please find the full article HERE.]

The Climate-Change Solution No One Will Talk About

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Nov 012014

JASON PLAUTZNOV 1 2014, 9:00 AM ET

Studies have shown that improved access to birth control can be a valuable tool in slowing global warming, but many politicians are afraid to broach the subject.

The equation seems fairly simple: The more the world’s population rises, the greater the strain on dwindling resources and the greater the impact on the environment. The solution? Well, that’s a little trickier to talk about. (…)

“We want to achieve agreement on what the climate commitments are from individual countries,” said Alexander Ochs of the Worldwatch Institute. “There’s a new opportunity here, a new approach that takes a bottom-up look at what countries want to bring to the table. … We’re just focused now on getting over the stumbling blocks.”

You can find the full article [here].

Birth Control Could Help the Environment, but Not Quickly

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Oct 302014

October 30, 2014 |By Niina Heikkinen and ClimateWire Family planning could help reduce the pressure human population puts on the planet, but not for decades. This week, a group of researchers promoted a different kind of global approach to addressing climate change: voluntary family planning.(…)

Reducing population growth and lowering fertility will improve communities’ resilience and adaptive capacity in the short term, as well as reduce greenhouse gas emissions. In the long term, population reductions could reduce the risk of climate impacts, according to the working group. It presented its proposals at a forum at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars in Washington, D.C., yesterday.

“Far too often in the past, it has been approached as giving up freedom, rather than looking at family planning as creating greater freedom and greater happiness,” said Alexander Ochs, director of the Climate and Energy Program at the Worldwatch Institute.

He described the working group’s promotion of family planning as a “women-centered rights-based approach” that focused on the “urgency and right of determining the timing and spacing of having children.”

Efforts to control fertility improve maternal and child health and welfare, while also conserving natural resources, he added.

You can find the full article [here].

Bridging the Gap: A Conversation About Family Planning and Climate Change

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Oct 282014

October 28, 2014 // 12:00pm — 2:00pm

Rapid population growth can be a contributing factor to both greenhouse gas emissions and vulnerability to climate stresses. Early childbearing, high fertility rates, and short birth intervals are associated with poor maternal and child health outcomes as well as lower educational attainment and work force participation, which directly impede women’s ability to participate and invest in climate change adaptation. However, the positive benefits of voluntary family planning, either for emissions reductions or adaptation, have not figured prominently in climate policy discussions or those related to improving access to family planning.

Broadcast live streaming video on Ustream Continue reading »

Renewables 2014 Global Status Report Highlights Another Year of Impressive Renewable Energy Growth

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Jun 032014

PRESS RELEASE Tuesday, June 3, 2014

Worldwatch Institute researchers contribute to leading global study on renewable energy development.

Washington, D.C.—-Renewable energy technologies set new installation records as their contribution to the global energy mix continued to climb in 2013. Renewable power capacity jumped more than 8 percent in 2013, accounting for over 56 percent of net additions and now has the potential to account for over a fifth of world electricity generation. These are some of the findings of the latest edition of the annual Renewables Global Status Report, released by the Paris-based Renewable Energy Policy Network for the 21st Century (REN21). The report is the product of a collaborative effort of an international network of more than 500 contributors, researchers, and authors. (…)

“Renewables are one of the most important tools in this century for social, economic, and environmental progress,” says Alexander Ochs, director of climate and energy at Worldwatch. “The paradigm that being dirty is good for the green in your pocket is eroding. This report demonstrates that we can overcome the political barriers and vested interests still in the way of a smarter, safer, and healthier world.”

[You can find the full press release and key findings from the report here.]

PNoy okays resolutions on climate change mitigation

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Apr 232014

MANILA, April 23 — President Benigno S. Aquino III last month approved two resolutions aimed at mitigating the release of black carbon to the environment and authorizing the design of a sustainable power system for more efficient energy production.

The President last March 25 approved Resolution 6 by the Climate Change Commission, authorizing the dialogue with Worldwatch Institute for the design of

“Sustainable Power System: A Roadmap for the Philippines.”

Through the resolution, the Climate Change Commission, which is in the process of carrying out the National Climate Change Action Plan, officially invites Alexander Ochs, director of the Climate and Energy Worldwatch Institute, to discuss his offer to help the country design a sustainable power system. The commission will coordinate with Director Ochs and the Worldwatch Institute through the office of Climate Change Commissioner Heherson Alvarez.

Best Practices in Gathering and Using Energy Data for LEDS Development

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Apr 102014

Best Practices in Gathering and Using Energy Data for LEDS Development

Recording of Webinar Presentation here: LEDS-GP_140410

Accessible, reliable, and up-to-date data is a critical factor in Low Emission Development Strategies (LEDS) energy planning. Unfortunately, policymakers often struggle with significant data gaps. This webinar presents an overview of the importance of energy data collection, best practices, and strategies for linking data collection and LEDS development processes. This is the first of a series of webinars organized by the LEDS GP Energy Working Group. The webinar series features insights and experiences drawn from the Energy Working Group’s diverse membership.

Alexander Ochs, Worldwatch Institute
Laura Williamson, REN21
Eder Semedo, ECREEE
Nicola Bugatti, ECREEE.

More information on the Energy Working Group of the LEDS GP can be found here: http://en.openei.org/wiki/LEDSGP/sector/energy. Worldwatch currently runs the secretariat of the EWG and Alexander Ochs acts as its chair.

Fossil Fuel Subsidies at $2 Trillion, Despite Global Condemnation

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Jan 302014

Despite a growing consensus that support for the oil and gas industry is unfair, inefficient and globally dangerous, there’s no actual implementation of plans to change it.

By Carey L. Biron | January 30, 2014

WASHINGTON – Global tax breaks, incentives, and various other consumption and production subsidies for the fossil fuel industry are likely topping $2 trillion each year, amounting to 2.5 percent of total gross domestic product for 2012. After a dip in the immediate aftermath of the global financial recession, these figures have risen in recent years, according to a new report from Worldwatch, a Washington-based think tank. Incentives for renewable energy sources remain tiny by comparison, estimated at just $88 billion for 2011. (…)

“In the U.S., a lot of this is just lip service. The country is really not yet walking the walk,” Alexander Ochs, director of climate and energy at the Worldwatch Institute, told MintPress. “Both nationally and internationally, we have not made any significant progress toward the goal of reducing subsidies, which was actually declared quite a long while ago. In my view, it’s outrageous that we’re not making any more progress.”

[You can find the whole story here]

Worldwatch Institute Launches Groundbreaking Sustainable Energy Roadmap for Jamaica

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Nov 012013

New Worldwatch Institute Roadmap explores the renewable energy status and potential in the country

Washington, D.C.—The Worldwatch Institute today launched its groundbreaking Sustainable Energy Roadmap for Jamaica, a look at the measures that the Jamaican government can take to transition its electricity sector to one that is socially, environmentally, and financially sustainable. The report, Jamaica Sustainable Energy Roadmap: Pathways to an Affordable, Reliable, Low-Emission Electricity System, is the culmination of years of intensive investigation. It analyzes the potential for energy efficiency and renewable energy deployment in Jamaica and discusses the social and economic impacts of alternative energy pathways, concluding that a scenario of high renewable penetration can bring significant savings, greater energy security, gains in competitiveness, and many other important benefits to the country.

“Jamaica is paying a colossal price to import polluting and health-threatening fossil fuels, even when it has the best clean energy resources at its doorstep: wind, solar, hydro, and biomass,” says Alexander Ochs, Director of Climate and Energy at Worldwatch and a co-author of the study. “The Jamaican government has set a nationwide goal of 20 percent renewable energy use by 2030; our Roadmap will help to realize this goal. What’s more, our analysis shows that the bar can and should be set much higher: Jamaica can become a zero-carbon island in a matter of decades, and its people would benefit enormously from such a transition.”

Worldwatch collaborated closely on this project with the Government of Jamaica. “I am very confident that the outcome of this project will enable Jamaica to map, in more precise ways, the additional electricijamaicaty generation capacity that we seek,” says Jamaican Energy Minister Philip Paulwell. “We intend to use the Roadmap to determine the next phase of new generation capacity, and it will enable us to be far more efficient than we have in the past.” Continue reading »

Renovables pueden ser vía al desarrollo centroamericano

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Oct 152013

by Melissa Gómez Arce

[CARTAGO, COSTA RICA] “Una rápida transición a la generación eléctrica 100 por ciento renovable es técnicamente posible y socioeconómicamente beneficiosa en todos los países centroamericanos”, destaca un estudio del Centro Latinoamericano para la Competitividad y el Desarrollo Sostenible (CLACDS/INCAE) y el Worldwatch Institute.

El informe ‘La Ruta hacia el Futuro para la Energía Renovable en Centroamérica’ –cuya versión en español se lanzó en agosto– evaluó la situación de las energías renovables, las deficiencias y las mejores prácticas para su desarrollo en la región.

Alexander Ochs, director de Energía y Clima del Worldwatch Institute, comenta a SciDev.Net que “las inversiones en energías renovables están aumentando en la región, pero los mecanismos de apoyo financiero ypolíticas existentes siguen siendo insuficientes para desarrollar todo su potencial”.

Añade que Centroamérica podría hacer frente a sus retos de desarrollo si alimentara sus economías en su totalidad con las fuentes de energía renovables, para lo cual se necesita un esfuerzo continuo de colaboración entre los investigadores, el gobierno y sector privado.

“Las inversiones en energías renovables están aumentando en la región, pero los mecanismos de apoyo financiero y políticas existentes siguen siendo insuficientes”.

Alexander Ochs

Latin America Enjoys Abundant Renewable Energy but Lacks Policies for Use

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Jun 182013

South and Central America could generate 100 percent of their electricity with renewable resources, a new study finds

By Lisa Friedman, Climatewire, picked up by Scientific American [here] and others

Latin America and the Caribbean could meet 100 percent of their electricity needs with renewable energy, a new Inter-American Development Bank study finds. From Mexico to Chile, countries already are producing higher levels of clean power, but the study notes the region still has a long way to go. Last year just 5.4 percent of the $244 trillion global renewable energy investment went to Latin America. But with Latin America’s economy expected to grow 3 percent annually, the study argues that the region will need to nearly double its installed power capacity to about 600 gigawatts by 2030 at a likely price tag of $430 billion.

The report, “Rethinking Our Energy Future,” will be released today at a Global Green Growth Forum meeting in Bogota, Colombia. It comes amid growing concern among energy experts that the region is not living up to its clean energy potential. (…)

Last week the Worldwatch Institute think tank in Washington, D.C., unveiled a Central America report also showing the region has the resources and the technical capacity to meet all its electricity needs with renewables. But, it argues, governments are undermining their own investments in geothermal, biomass, wind and solar with plans to increase imports of oil, coal and natural gas.

“Central America is at a crossroads,” Alexander Ochs, director of climate and energy at the Worldwatch Institute, said in the study. According to the study, Latin America currently generates about 7 percent of the world’s total electricity production, but demand is skyrocketing as population levels rise and the region’s economy improves. By midcentury, Latin America’s power demand is expected to triple while carbon emissions from the power sector will double. Continue reading »

Worldwatch & REN 21 Policy Briefing 2013

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Apr 252013

U.S. Representative Rush Holt (D-NJ), the Worldwatch Institute, and the Renewable Energy Policy Network for the 21st Century (REN21) held a policy briefing on the status and future of renewable energy in the United States and around the world.

Featuring commentary by:

Mohamed El-Ashry, Senior Fellow, UN Foundation
Christine Lins, Executive Secretary, REN21
Eric Martinot, Author, Renewables Global Futures Report
Alexander Ochs, Director of Climate and Energy, Worldwatch Institute

You can find the event announcement [here]

Worldwatch & INCAE on Costa Rica’s Channel 7

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Mar 022013

Alexander Ochs Chosen to Head Worldwatch Climate and Energy Program

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Sep 302009

by Press on September 30, 2009, http://www.worldwatch.org/node/6273

Washington, D.C.-The Worldwatch Institute announced today that Alexander Ochs, a well-known expert on international climate and energy policy, has joined the Institute as Climate and Energy Program Director. Prior to joining Worldwatch, Alexander was the director of international policy at the Center for Clean Air Policy. He is the founding director of the Forum for Atlantic Climate and Energy Talks (FACET) and a senior fellow at Johns Hopkins University. He resides in Washington, D.C.

“We are extremely pleased to welcome Alexander Ochs to our team. His extensive background and expertise on both sides of the Atlantic will strengthen Worldwatch’s work during the run-up to the historic climate talks in Copenhagen this December,” said Christopher Flavin, President of the Worldwatch Institute.

Alexander Ochs was a senior research associate at the German Institute for International and Security Affairs in Berlin from 2001 to 2007, where he co-founded and later directed the International Network to Advance Climate Talks. Ochs has held research and/or teaching positions at the City University of New York, Princeton University, Munich University, and the Freie and Humboldt Universities in Berlin. He has been a member of the German delegation to the UN climate negotiations and is co-editor of two books and author of numerous scholarly articles and policy papers. Ochs is a regular commentator for Deutsche Welle, Germany’s public international broadcaster, as well as Grist Magazine, and a member of various climate and energy advisory committees.

“After years of following Worldwatch’s pioneering work, I am thrilled to have the opportunity to contribute to this influential organization,” said Ochs. “Our immediate goal is to help advance the worldwide efforts to mitigate climate change in the lead up to Copenhagen and beyond.”