Energy Developments

Over the next several decades, as human populations grow, the demand for energy will soar. But renewable energy sources have a large energy sprawl--the amount of land needed to produce energy--which can threaten biodiversity. In Energy Sprawl Solutions, scientists Joseph M. Kiesecker and David Naugle provide a roadmap for preserving biodiversity despite the threats of energy sprawl. Their strategy--development by design--identifies and sets aside land where biodiversity can thrive while consolidating development in areas with lower biodiversity value. This contributed volume features case studies from countries around the world, each describing a different energy sector and the way they have successfully maximized biodiversity protection. This book provides a needed guide for elected officials, industry representatives, NGOs and community groups who have a stake in sustainable energy-development planning.

The Middle Eastern and North African region (MENA) dominates world energy exports today and will likely do so for decades to come, even if world consumers make steady progress in conservation, renewable energy sources, and increases from gas, coal, and nuclear power. The MENA region, however, has been the scene of both internal crises and external conflicts. On several occasions, these crises have affected either the flow of MENA energy exports or the development of energy production and export capacity. The politics, economics, and social dynamics that shape threats to regional stability are complex. Cordesman details the factors behind these diverse forces and outlines current supply levels and future trends, taking each of these variables into consideration. The MENA area includes at least 22 states, with a combined population of nearly 300 million, each with different political, economic, demographic, and security conditions and needs. It is divided into at least four sub-regions including the Maghreb (Mauritania, Morocco, Algeria, Libya, and Tunisia); the Levant and the Arab-Israeli confrontation states (Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, and Syria); the Gulf (Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Oman); and the Red Sea states (Yemen, the Sudan, and Somalia). This important guide outlines the forces affecting each sub-region, including supply, demand, and financing, and forecasts the likely impact that different scenarios would have on energy resources under varying world conditions.

This book explores the complex relationship between energy and development and discusses the core issues and concepts surrounding this growing area of research and policy. In the field of energy and development, the world faces two major challenges: (1) Providing energy access to the roughly one billion people worldwide who do not have access to electricity and the nearly three billion people worldwide who do not have access to clean cooking fuels; (2) achieving socioeconomic development while limiting global atmospheric temperature increases to 2 degrees Celsius to mitigate climate change. Taking stock of progress, Frauke Urban explores the key issues surrounding these goals and addresses the policy responses aimed at ending energy poverty and achieving sustainable development. She outlines various options for delivering energy access, analyses past and prospective energy transitions and examines the social, environmental, economic and technological implications of these possibilities. Taking a holistic and multi-disciplinary approach and containing useful teaching resources, Energy and Development provides a comprehensive overview of this complex field of study. This book will be a great resource for postgraduate and undergraduate students, scholars, practitioners and policymakers working in the fields of energy studies, international development, environmental studies, industrial engineering, as well as social sciences that relate to energy and development.