by far the best talk i've come across on emergent energy trends and energy security. he talks about peak-oil - on the demand side - i.e. the availability of cheaper renewables ("oil will be unappealing at lower prices before it becomes unavailable at higher ones"). he also builds on various convergence logic - that exponential technologies - manufacturing, materials, information, etc. will lead to multiplicative effects in energy efficiency.
it's great to come across this sage voice in the american energy establishment. abundant energy will transform the human condition - i just hope we can minimize the pain of transition in paradigm (centralized to distributed and fossil to renewable) and technology (convergent, emergent).
amory lovins also uses interesting language i have not come across before. he talks about "fee-bates" or fees on fossil based energy use to subsidize cleaner methods. he also refers to fossil fuels as "elite" sources that are localized and scarce.
i hope international cooperation will facilitate fast diffusion of renewable technology. is there an open source movement for clean energy production and utilization?
[do look up www.rmi.org. this is the web presence for mr. lovins' rocky mountain institute. they have a knowledge centre which is a treasure trove of white papers on energy]
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