The Global Community for Sustainable Energy Professionals
Hans Nilsson has worked with energy issues since 1966. His experience covers energy supply, distribution, planning and energy efficiency both from a policy, management and programme implementation point of view. He has worked within several sorts of organisations such as municipality owned utilities, government agencies, intergovernmental organisations, private companies and business associations and was in the 1990's director for the Swedish Energy Efficiency Programme. The work has to a large extent been related to international issues and international co-operation both for business and for NGOs. Mr Nilsson is presently the chairman of the IEA DSM Programme and runs his own consultancy company FourFact.
Al Gore has challenged his fellow Americans, or rather their future leaders (see footnote), to take on the task of pr
The so-called G8 process on energy and climate will culminate this week with the summit-meeting in Hokkaido, Japan.
The UK got one of the tougher tasks when Europe distributed the shares for renewables within the 20% target for 2020.
In the face of overwhelming scientific evidence of climate change, how come there are sceptics at all?
The IEA has presented their Energy Technology Perspectives 2008, ETP 2008, which is both the sequel to the 2006 versi
“The market is a good servant but a bad master”. That is at least the old way of saying has it.
We are now so used to talking about climate change in terms of policy, of technicalities, such as GHG-concentration i
The quote is from none other than Mahatma Gandhi, who was in turn quoted by the IPCC-chair, Rajendra Pachauri, when h
Having travelled in Northwestern India for two weeks in a climate that is blisteringly hot for a person from northern
A new survey issued in the Eurobarometer investigates the attitudes of the Europeans to the environment.
With some noise, Virgin Air and Boeing announced that they were doing a commercial flight on biofuel.
If you are Norwegian you will be inclined to say “yes” and will be able to provide good technological evidence to sup
Smart has for some time been the buzz-word in energy circles. We should act energy-smart, we should have smart meters
Many countries have an intense debate about their opportunities to meet the new obligations in the EU Climate and Ene
Something strange has happened with the EU Climate and Energy package.
The EU package on renewable fuels and climate is advertised for Wednesday January 23rd.
Investment in renewable fuels is booming.
The road to sustainability is not straight.
The message from Bali that climate negotiations will continue with the aim OF a new agreement at COP 15 in Copenhagen
Appliance labelling, especially in Europe, has been a tremendous success in many ways, but has unfortunately failed i
While the world is struggling with climate issues and as IPCC has issued its final report, underlining the severity a
It will certainly be some time before we see a global carbon market, but there are a few interesting proposals which
Almost one third of the global population does not have access to electricity.
The Chinese leadership confirms, in the recent party-congress, its intention to change the economy for the better, no
A necessary, but insufficient, condition is that the findings of the researchers can be transferred to common knowled
The well-known sceptical environmentalist, (as he calls himself,) Bjørn Lomborg, is marketing his new book “Cool it”. He does so in an article with the witty title “Global Warning” in which he repeats his arguments that there are other issues more pressing and important to deal with than the global warming.
As in earlier articles, the stories told are anecdotal and fragmented, and often seem to be taken out of context. It is true that many of us have, in many respects, a better life today than decades ago, but that is certainly not evidence of a continuous development for the betterment of all, worldwide.
He claims that the polar bear, an oft-used indicator of global warming hazards, is a growing population, and the hunting in Hudson Bay is more dangerous to these animals than global warming. The truth seems to be that the reason for the hunting in Hudson Bay is that polar bears have to retreat and find new habitats when the ice melts. They then come “too close for comfort” to humans in the villages who sometimes have to give an armed response.
You may remember the play by Shakespeare and how the witches tell Macbeth that he will remain in power until the fore
The first round of consultations regarding the Strategic Energy Technology (SET)-plan for Europe is now available. It is the public consultation. One may discuss how representative it is from a public and democratic point of view, but it certainly mirrors some sort of popular considerations. About half of the 604 responses are from organisations and companies, of which 40% of the responses are from individual companies and approximately the same amount from associations, research centres and universities taken together. The remainder of the responses are from individuals.
The majority of responses from individuals are from Italy (some 17%) followed by Germany (9%), whereas in the group of professionals Germany was most represented (17 %) followed by Belgium and Spain (both some 11%).
but still remains on the wish-list.
Let us remind ourselves again of the words of the Stern Review; those that said the business of the future will take
The flexible mechanism known as Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) has a built-in mechanism for failure.
The voluntary markets for carbon offsets have been criticised and warnings issued about carbon cowboys raiding the ma
A British think-tank, which is known for being Eurosceptic, predicts that the trading scheme ETS is heading for a new
The Lumina project, which is engaged in development of LED-lighting equipment, primarily for use in developing countr
We often get the impression that the sustainable future lies in a shift of technologies only, and furthermore that it
More and more often, we are reading about the concern that biofuel will have an adverse impact on global food supply
A month ago, a statement was issued, signed by almost 200 large global companies, calling for actions in relation to
Just recently China, was reported to have taken over the U.S.
We thought that we had seen everything, but there is still are still new things, such as a car running on air!
We have a tendency to discuss the decision processes in business as if they were very simplistic calculations that in
A few of the really big companies speak with a different voice from that of the others and, for that matter, differen
The Live Earth event last Saturday was quite amazing in its promotion of energy efficiency and the slogan "Answer the
If you live in or visit some of the megacities with transportation problems you surely find yourself envying the moto
Is it presumptuous to take stock of this year's development (towards sustainability) only halfway through?
Energy policies that involve utilities (the old DSM-way) were never totally out, but are coming back strong.
The Europeans, to an overwelming majority (close to 90%), are concerned with climate issues and demand action now!
Lehman Brothers have produced a report called "The Business of Climate Change, Challenges and Opportunities"
Trains have changed tremendously over the years and are well prepared to take up the fight at least with short-haul f
The McKinsey quarterly has an article about biofuels arguing that it is time to invest now and not wait.
...but how significant will it be for the future? It is obvious that the temperature has risen since their meeting in
Having seen the collapse of the European Emission Trading Scheme for Greenhouse Gases in its first phase with its ove
The Economist Intelligence Unit has made a very revealing survey of business attitudes to climate change worldwide.
A Swiss solar-powered boat arrived in New York in early May after a trip across the Atlantic; a distance of approxima
The major of New York City, Michael Bloomberg, has announced his intention that New York should be 'the first environ
The long-awaited report from IPCC on measures for mitigating the GHG and reducing the problems of the climate change
Now that prices are less than one € per ton, some are saying the ETS has collapsed.
The Financial Times has issued a warning that the interest in (and necessity for) action in order to stop climate cha
Creating a sustainable energy system requires commitment and firmness.
This time from UNEP, United Nations Environment Programme.
The energy package announced that a strategic energy technology plan, STP, should be made in the year 2007.
When the deep pockets consider what humanity needs for the future, they come up with the idea of procuring a spaceshi
There is a lot of hope for CCS as a solution to especially coal-fired power, but are these hopes in vain?
A few years ago when liberalisation of electricity markets gathered speed, many utilities withdrew their interest fro
Is this an echo of the past - or just a negotiation attitude?
When did you last hear an industry ask for more legislation? Well, now it has happened!
There is a growing tendency to phase-out and ban inefficient equipment such as lighting, but also low performing hous
This year's publication of the Worldwatch bestseller "State of the World" is about the cities and called "Our Urban F
And indeed that is what the new British Climate Change Bill provides.
The BBC has produced a computer game, available online, in which you, being president of Europe, can decide on climat
Monty Python are British, aren't they? And it is in U.K.
In 1714 the British Parliament offered £20.000 to anyone who could develop a device that enabled ships to determine t
The debate over sustainability is ever so often made up as a comparative mathematical problem.
The January issue of African Business has a section on sustainable energy from an African perspective that could be u
Denmark has a tremendous experience from wind power in many applications.
In some of the comments in Europe (let us be tactful and avoid names) to the issue of climate change and the need for
ETSO, which is the co-operation of European Transmission System Operators, has published an explanatory note on Deman
When the first dust has settled from the comments to the Energy package and every party has confirmed their (mostly k
Is rewritable printing paper better than just a good idea?
The Carbon Saving Trust in the UK has published an image of the UK Carbon Foot Print.
The diagnosis is superb and the medicine right, but the prescription still weak.
In a recent conference of the German Council for a Sustain
They have managed to stay away from the burden-sharing to reduce GHG-emissions for quite some time, but now the airli
The power struggle in Brussels over the missing efficiency action plan is taken to new heights!
There is a battle going on in the EU-commission about the energy issues.
Methane gas hydrate, also named "combustible ice" has been found in huge quantities in the south Chinese Sea bed and
The success of Al Gore's book and film "An Inconvenient Truth" can hardly be more obvious than if his opponent from t
One of the concerns about the economical development, and especially the tremendous growth in China, has been if it i
This week, we have discussed reports that show the urgency of climate change.
One of the explanations, that political actions to prevent climate change are so slow, is that the observed physical
An Inconvenient truth, the film that is based on Al Gore'
Demand Response is still under development and we are still far from seeing the full scope of how customers (and thei
In analysing market development one often uses the diffusion curve (see below) to show what segments are targeted and
Solar panels are still something for enthusiasts and the so called "early adopters" but may soon be available in a sh
This summer has been the warmest ever in the northern hemisphere and it is still not over.
The European Environment Agency in Copenhagen has quite a reputation for independence and for creation of useful comp
Will half of the worlds lighting 20 years from now be from solid state LED (Light Emitting Diodes)?
We have got used to over the short period of about a year that strategic energy issues are tackled beginning with the
Tomorrow July 15 the G8 summit begins and it has energy security as the number 1 item on their agenda.
This week the UK government has published its energy re
Last week there was a competition for solar p
One of the lesser-known (in industrialised countries) burdens for ordinary people in developing countries is fuel-bas
The huge financing institutions have increasingly turned their interest towards sustainable energy, renewables and en
As seen on this site there seems to be a connection between Human Development and electrification - up to a point, an
There is more than one way to do it and the discussion about certificates vs feed-in tariffs is global.
Is our mindset too narrow when we consider the road to a future sustainability?
Europe's biggest on-shore windfarm will soon be a reality in Scottland.
Bill Clinton had in his first campaign for presidency a mantra that his staff put before him every time he went on st
The Commons Environmental Audit Committee in the British Parliament has filed a report called "Keeping the lights on"
Or just another (among many) is the Observ-er that however gives were comprehensive and easy-to-read material with go
Well you may know them by the name "White Certificates" as they are referred to in the Energy Service directives (Ene
World Resources Institute took a look into the crystal ball end of 2005 and found some trends for 2006 that seem prom
Much ado about nothing or yet another step towards a European energy policy?
The torch of the statue of lliberty in New York will in the future be lit by windpower.
ELI, The Efficient Lighting Initiative, began as a global project with projects in all continents, but is now transfo
Department of Energy has recently presented a report on Demand Response and Recommendations for achieving them.
Learning curves are no doubt very useful for understanding matters of technology development and its consequences.
'We are missing a great opportunity.' The words are those of the EU commissioner on competition, Ms Neelie Kroes, in
There is aspirations and talk about that measures for sustainability also should serve an instrument to create more j
China claims that they with 75 Million sqm of solar heaters already hold 60% of all installed globally and that they
Members of the European Parliament and some national Parliaments have taken an initiative for action on energy effici
The Asia-Pacific Partnership on Clean Development and Climate was announced some months ago as a co-operation between
Many evaluations and policy declarations are focusing on improvements in energy efficiency and in particular in impro
The Chinese electrical system has for quite some years struggled with power outages but is also expanded on the gener
Many countries are facing a tightening reserve capacity in their electrical systems.
A frequently recurring debate over new energy technologies is whether they can be defended from the perspective of co
A recent report by Hans Nilsson (4-Fakt) and Ylva Blume (Borgco) discusses the
