Green City Times

Gain insight into climate solutions such as: renewable energy, energy efficiency, sustainable mass transportation, urban planning, green building, smart grids, microgrids, regenerative agriculture; various other methods of sustainable ag, as well as reforestation. Current cutting-edge clean energy technology is examined, including the latest GCT featured articles on energy storage, green building; and solutions to fossil fuels like electric vehicles.

Technological breakthroughs in, and explanations of, sources of renewable energy are detailed: solar PV & solar thermal, wind & offshore wind farms, biomass & biofuels, hydroelectricty, and geothermal energy. Also see our views on carbon pricing. Additionally, find featured GCT deep dives, such as - renewable energy jobs are UP, and RE costs are DOWN; for details on the quickest job growth sector globally- clean energy.

Along with featuring the world's GREENEST CITIES, GCT also features the latest global trends in sustainability. Gain insight into global progress on climate goals made at the Paris Climate Accord, and Green City Times' 10+ point plan for successful climate change mitigation policies to reduce global greenhouse gas emissions.

Reducing global GHGs entails the global clean energy transition from a fossil fuel based economy to an economy based on renewable energy. However, a successful energy transition also involves other proactive clean energy measures; such as increased electrification and energy efficiency technologies for multiple sectors of the urban economy. The global energy transition requires cities to electrify everything - transportation, buildings; every urban economic sector.

Successful global climate action will be achieved - when electrification and decarbonization of ALL economic sectors of cities is pursued as expeditiously as possible worldwide.

Green City Times details global low carbon energy transition pathways, as well as zero emissions energy strategies. Worldwide, many different low carbon pathways are needed, in addition to strategies to sequester carbon already in the planet's atmosphere, in order to achieve carbon neutrality (with the target of net zero emissions globally by 2050). Clean energy technological solutions can bring the world to carbon neutrality by 2050; before a global phase-out of carbon-intensive and environmentally polluting energy sources really takes hold in the latter half of the century. Greater investment in clean energy technologies is needed globally, both for currently implemented technological solutions, as well as for clean energy solutions in various stages of R&D.

There must be global prioritization of generating energy with low emission energy technologies (on the path to net zero carbon emissions); as well as a global increase of carbon free energy sources, such as wind and solar. There must also be a global expansion of research and development of clean energy technologies. This means expanded global public-private investment in energy storage, electrifying transportation, in energy efficient buildings (both investment in energy efficiency standards for new construction, and in retrofitting existing buildings with the latest energy efficiency technologies); and in other areas of innovation in sustainable energy technologies. Many of these technologies are readily available today, and represent practical options for the expansion of current sustainable development.

Other technological solutions for a low carbon energy transition include: demand response, combined heat & power, gasification, anaerobic digestion, and IGCC. We also provide insight into the (hopeful) future of a current zero carbon emissions energy source - nuclear energy - (optimistically) improved in the coming decades by Gen IV and small modular reactor technologies (Gen IV nuclear is still in R&D).

There must be global investment in every available, expedient, and viable, GHG mitigation measure; as well as increased investment in carbon removal measures. Although there are promising technologies for removing carbon from emission-intensive energy generation and from the atmosphere - such as carbon capture & sequestration for energy generation with carbon intensive fuels; as well as direct carbon capture - there are several readily available measures that represent the planet's best bets. These solutions are: reforestation including developing and maintaining urban forestry (and stop deforestation), regenerative agriculture, agroforestry, and other forms of sustainable agriculture. These sustainable measures represent the immediate solutions of expanding carbon sinks needed to ensure a healthy planet.