New Report Maps Seven Critical Areas for Energy Sector Transformation and Calls for Breakthrough Global Climate Action

Monday 18 November 2019 12:01
RMI's 'Seven Challenges for Energy Transformation' outlines a path for world leaders and top energy sector actors to mitigate the climate crisis in the next decade.

Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI) today launched a new report, Seven Challenges for Energy Transformation, during three connected international events in Delhi, Beijing and New York. The events — branded "EMERGE" — convened some of the world's leading energy stakeholders and catalysts to kick-start a global effort to accelerate the energy transition and mitigate the climate crisis.

The report frames RMI's view on the most critical areas for collective action in the next three to five years that will keep global temperature rise to well below 2 degrees Celsius. The report identifies tipping points for rapid change that can be leveraged across investment, breakthrough policies, cross-sectoral partnerships and more. It calls for decisive actions on the part of citizens, corporations, philanthropic institutions, subnational leaders, regulators and policymakers to work together in new ways that leapfrog outdated boundaries and scale new and existing technologies.

"Working together, public and private institutions can harness market forces to dramatically accelerate the deployment of clean energy technologies," said Richard Kauffman, chair of the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority. "I'm proud New York is showing how these partnerships are making good progress towards our climate goals."

The events serve as a starting point for leading energy sector thinkers and catalysts across India, China and the U.S. to explore the seven challenges and develop innovative, market-led ideas that will transform global energy use. Guided by the framework of the report, senior leaders from the public, private and philanthropic sectors will identify the highest leverage points to massively scale zero-carbon solutions together. This ongoing work — part of a multiyear effort spearheaded by RMI — is being undertaken via a series of global labs for stakeholders to forge powerful, cross-sector connections and drive exponential impact.

"The time for action is now," said Jules Kortenhorst, CEO of RMI. "The window of opportunity to avoid the most severe consequences is closing quickly. This report, and our efforts to mobilize the world's top leaders to solve it together, is a critical first step to bring about urgently needed change."

To download the report, visit https://rmi.org/seven-challenges-report

Media Contact:

Nick Steel

Rocky Mountain Institute

[email protected]