Chapter 16: Where do we go from here?
by Brian Gitt
Access to affordable and reliable energy has lifted billions of people out of extreme poverty and led to unprecedented advances in quality of life.
It has provided people with food, safety, clean water, healthcare, sanitation, education, and economic opportunity. And it has driven technological advancements that have shaped modern society and promoted human flourishing.
If we want to continue expanding access to the benefits of modern life and continue driving innovation in artificial intelligence, robotics, and technologies that shrink our environmental footprint, then we need to continue harnessing ever more efficient, reliable, and energy-dense fuels. That’s how we can help people in the developing world and ensure that developed nations continue driving innovation. It’s also how we can minimize and reverse damage to the environment.
Right now many leaders in the developed world are moving us in the wrong direction. Instead of leading us toward better energy sources, they’re leading us toward worse ones—energy sources that harm both people and the planet. We need to get back on the right path. We need to embrace The Better Energy Strategy.
Here’s how we can help the US get on the Better Energy path.
Accelerate the transition from coal to natural gas and nuclear power.
Finance power plants, transmission lines, and pipelines in the developing world.
Reform regulations to support the rapid deployment of nuclear power plants.
End finance restrictions on oil, gas, and coal.
Build hydro- and geothermal plants wherever possible.
Eliminate renewable energy subsidies that distort the price of power and are parasitic on the economics of thermal power plants.
Build pipelines that support domestic oil and gas production and distribution.
Build liquefied natural gas (LNG) facilities that encourage trade in natural gas.
Upgrade and expand refinery capacity.
I’ve dedicated my adult life to protecting our environment. That’s something I’ll never regret. But I do regret the ideological way I once went about it. I regret not thinking deeply enough about the costs and benefits of different sources of energy. I regret not thinking critically enough about renewable energy and the popular misconceptions of it circulated in the mainstream media. Above all, I regret ignoring the plight of people like Grace, the fourteen-year-old Ugandan girl I described earlier. She and the 3 billion other people living in energy poverty are the ones suffering most from the misguided energy policies being adopted in the developed world. We need to remember her.
More energy—and better energy—is the key to unlocking human potential. We need to share a bold vision of a better future.