Article appeared in Russian in Molodjozh Estonii on March 4, 2008

A Shared Responsibility: Developing Renewable Energy in America and Around the Globe

Ambassador Stanley Davis Phillips

“Our security, our prosperity, and our environment all require reducing our dependence on oil.” With these words used during his State of the Union address, President Bush captured the significance of renewable energy development.

Renewable energy presents us with a rare opportunity to make a substantial, positive impact on our world and the generations that will follow. Already, we are seeing the potential of renewable energy. Hydropower plants, driven by flowing water, operate at more than twice the efficiency of fossil fuel plants. Wind energy is the fastest growing renewable energy technology around the globe, and the Department of Energy estimates that good wind areas have the potential to supply more than one and a half times the current electricity consumption of the United States. Ethanol—just last decade a fuel only familiar to energy industry insiders—is now a common and readily available additive at gas stations across America.

However, as we celebrate this impressive growth, it is clear that we are only at the beginning of a challenging, and exciting path. We've cleared some of the most difficult hurdles, but there are more hills to climb before renewable energy becomes a mainstream technology. For instance, our infrastructure has been designed for the transportation, distribution, and use of fossil fuels; and renewable fuels require different constructs. Ethanol is not yet commercially available on a large scale. Emerging technologies like solar energy are not yet cost-competitive against mainstream energy sources.

These are significant challenges, but the United States government believes that renewable energy is worth the time and investment it will take to overcome them.

Renewable energy is a national priority, and as such, it requires a cohesive and coherent national policy. Since the beginning of the Bush Administration, the federal government has provided $18 billion dollars (often partnering with the private sector) towards the research, development and marketing of renewable energy technology. But developing clean, renewable technologies is a goal that reaches beyond our borders. This must be a global effort, for we all share the same planet and must all share in the responsibility for its health. In his State of the Union address, President Bush charged us with completing an international agreement to reduce greenhouse gases and to mitigate climate change.

The Departments of State, Energy, Agriculture, Commerce, Interior, as well as the Environmental Protection Agency, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, the United States Agency for International Development, and the White House Council on Environmental Quality, are pleased to help advance these goals by gathering together renewable energy authorities from industry, academia and government for the Washington International Renewable Energy Conference – or WIREC 2008. Agriculture, Energy, Environment, and Foreign ministers from more than 100 countries will gather in Washington to share policies and best practices for renewable energy development.

From March 4-6 in Washington, DC, critical components for a major and rapid scale-up in global renewable energy use will be together in one place, building on the previous global renewable energy conferences held in Bonn (2004) and Beijing (2005). Cabinet-level officials will have the chance to interact with academia, non-profits, and industry executives from all sectors of the renewable energy industry. We are excited that Estonia will be well represented by senior diplomats from its Embassy in Washington and by representatives from the Ministry of Agriculture.

WIREC will present a comprehensive approach to renewable energy development, focusing on the four pillars that will support a successful industry: agriculture and rural development; technology research and development; market adoption and financing, and active participation by state and local authorities.

Participants will have the opportunity to make voluntary pledges outlining the actions, measures and policies they will undertake to increase renewable energy use worldwide. We are also developing a searchable database of best practices in renewable energy development, to foster international collaboration and knowledge-sharing.

It is my hope that we will come away from this conference with increased understanding and enhanced relationships. It is only through international cooperation that we will succeed. I ask my colleagues from around the globe to join us in this effort and help revolutionize the way we power our world.

The time has come for renewable energies to become mainstream technologies. Let us join together and make this goal a reality.