Dirty #Climate & Dirty Power: Global Problem with Local Solution

The latest United Nations climate conventions in Doha, Qatar and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil have served to highlight a sad truth: the world's polluting interests will continue to restrict the monumental changes and innovation that are required to have even the slightest chance of minimizing the upcoming global climate catastrophe (as avoidance appears to be now beyond reach by World Bank estimations).  This powerful lobby will continue to receive more national government investments than green research.  It is more apparent than ever that action to mitigate the worse effects will have to come from the community level worldwide and by harnessing the collective action of the Internet for alternative pathways of funding, research, education and collaborative action.

One of the largest sources of pollution is the energy generation sector and one of the greatest power consumer segments are commercial buildings.  While there is much excitement with grid modernization such as smart metering, demand response, and distribution automation, the industry does not appear to have the funding and will to move swiftly enough to meet more aggressive climate change goals.  With luckwarm leadership in the White House and its support of ramping up of national fossil fuel production despite climate science indicating the very opposite should be done; despite the political opening provided by super storm Sandy and public outcry against the Keystone XL pipeline.

A major part of addressing global warming must be leadership and cooperation among progressive communities like college campuses and entire cities around the world. They must push toward net-zero and net-positive buildings, neighborhoods, and campuses toward completely energy self-dependent cities and countries.  Rather than individual residential and commercial property owners having to wait for renewable and low-emission distributed generation and net-metering policies, a cooperative, neighborhood-wide or municipality-led approach can accelerate the virtual power plant paradigm implementation. 

To learn more, read  Alex Stephan's book (available for purchase and for free) on how cities can lead the climate fight. I also recommend Memoori's industry white paper entitled "Why Interfacing Smart Buildings Is the Perfect Union." It predicts faster, more significant, cost-effective progress (at approximately 1% of overall smart grid budgets) with clearer benefit and hence support of end-users.

Rocky Mountain Institute: "158 percent bigger United States economy in 2050

but needing no oil, coal, or nuclear energy"