Global electricity demand is up by more than 6 percent, the largest increase since 2010. The demands were in large part due to strong economic growth, plus colder winters and hotter summers linked to climate change. As energy needs go up, how can cleaner sources take a bigger role?

A start-up in New York is trying to make solar panels and clean heating available to everyone, including low-income neighborhoods.

“We can now rip out fossil fuel heating, cooling, cooking equipment out of buildings and replace it with all electric, green, healthy, smart, modern electric equipment. We can do it for buildings all over the world that will reduce global greenhouse gas emissions by over 30 percent,” said Donnel Baird, founder of BlocPower.

Environmental Resilience

Extreme weather events are expected to worsen globally. Florida is at the forefront of the crisis. But, coastal cities like Miami Beach are adopting initiatives designed to boost environmental sustainability.

“We’ve invested about $200 million in climate adaptation projects already, and we have many more in the hopper,” said Amy Knowles, chief resilience offer for the city of Miami Beach. 

These projects include elevating roads and investing in new storm water systems.

“We want our city to be enjoyable now and to be beautiful and to improve the quality of life,” she said.

Green Transportation

E-scooters have the potential to become an incredibly popular part of the transportation landscape in Europe. We follow Gabriel Yoong, a London-based mechanical engineer and founder of HoneyComb Network.

“We’re trying to develop, install and then operate a network of smart charging storage locker pods across urban areas, meaning the UK and then globally,” Yoong said.

We also meet Elizabeth Martinez, a chemical engineer at the University of Barcelona working on carbon capture technology.

“While it’s true that plant life helps absorb C02, it isn’t enough. We have an excess that has gone beyond the limits and it won’t come back into balance,” Martinez said.