News around sustainability and climate change can often get us down, but to keep making meaningful progress we need to stay optimistic. To stay motivated and focused on achieving sustainability goals, we have put together some highlights of positive news to start the new year off right.
Renewable energy’s exponential growth
Renewable energy is now more affordable than fossil fuels to produce. In fact, solar power has become the most inexpensive source of electricity in the world making it literally ‘cheaper to save the world than destroy it.’ We’re pleased to report that renewables are forecast to make up more than one-third of the world’s power supply in 2024 according to the IEA. Germany’s emissions hit a 70-year low last year due in part to reduced reliance on coal, which is a great sign of progress from Europe’s largest economy. The development of renewable energy is also accelerating globally, and the COP28 goal of tripling renewable energy use by 2030 is looking reachable as China’s contribution to solar power has helped drive a 50% increase this past year.
With a few clicks you can see the green energy transition taking place in real time. Sites such as ESO’s carbon intensity dashboard and Energy Dashboard allow you to observe the electricity generation sources and carbon intensity of UK grid electricity. As of writing, wind tops the charts as the largest renewable energy source making up around 35% of our electricity.
Innovative heat generation
Despite recent setbacks to heat pump legislation pushing the transition deadline out to 2035, the UK government have taken the positive step of announcing it will relax planning laws on the installation of solar panels and heat pumps on protected buildings in England. This will affect around 3 million listed properties in the country and speed the transition away from gas boilers, helping the country stay warm while meeting net-zero targets.
Major industry actors are also playing a role in developing new ways to produce and conserve heat energy. Octopus Energy has put a £200m investment into an innovative scheme that uses the heat produced from data centres to heat swimming pools. It is thought that this ‘free heat ’will allow up to 150 public leisure centre pools in the UK to cut their energy bills and could be harnessed for other uses in the future.
Legislation, corporate sustainability strategy, and biodiversity
This year will see the phase-in of the EU Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), requiring approximately 50,000 companies to start reporting on sustainability-related impacts, risks and opportunities. This incorporates a double materiality perspective, looking at both the risks and opportunities arising from issues such as climate change and the impact of the organisation on people and the planet. The new legislation will make transparency the only option for larger EU businesses and hopefully encourage them to improve year-on-year whilst working on their sustainability strategies.
It is also anticipated that 2024 will be the year we see nature rights enter the political mainstream. Alongside the rise of carbon reporting, we have seen the importance of biodiversity being acknowledged by businesses such as Faith in Nature who put nature on their board of directors. Additionally, we are seeing several early adopters of the Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD) reporting the impacts of their business on the natural world and integrating nature into decision-making.
For further positive inspiration, look no further than the newly released ‘Not the End of the World’. In its pages Hannah Ritchie, lead researcher from Our World in Data, provides a more optimistic take on tackling the climate crisis based on sound statistical research.
Focusing on the positives and maintaining a drive to take collective action has been found to ease the worst symptoms of climate anxiety. We hope you keep these stories in mind while continuing to do what you can as individuals and businesses to reduce your environmental impact as we begin 2024.
