The Energy Climate Balance
There are few more precious commodities on this planet than energy. It is essential to nearly everything we do - it heats and cools our homes, powers our cars and provides the means to manufacture all the goods that we take for granted. Energy is essential to the quality of life that we enjoy.
But not everybody on this planet has access to the energy they need. Today, there are 1.6 billion people in the developing world without access to electricity, and about 2.4 billion who rely on basic fuels such as wood and dung for heating and cooking.
The desire of people in the developing world for a better quality of life will be the key driver of global energy demand growth over the next few decades. At the same time, the developed world will need increased supplies of energy to maintain and enhance living standards.
This continued economic progress will require more energy, resulting in a global demand for energy that is expected to be about 40% higher in 2030 than today. Meeting that demand is one challenge. Another is that this increased use of energy will result in increased greenhouse gas emissions. Climate change is an important issue facing society today, one that ExxonMobil takes very seriously.
There is increasing evidence that the earth's climate has warmed on average about 0.7 C in the last century. Many global ecosystems, especially the polar areas, are showing signs of warming. CO2 emissions have increased during this same time period -- and emissions from fossil fuels and land use changes are one source of these emissions.
Climate remains today an extraordinarily complex area of scientific study. But the risks to society and ecosystems from increases in CO2 emissions could prove to be significant. So despite the areas of uncertainty that do exist, it is prudent to develop and implement strategies that address the risks, keeping in mind the central importance of energy to the economies of the world.
These strategies should seek to reduce emissions, while understanding the context of managing carbon emissions among other important world priorities, such as economic development, poverty eradication and public health.
Academia has an important role to play - it will be vital to inspire and develop young scientists and engineers who will discover the technological breakthroughs required to address our future energy and environmental needs. Managing the energy and environmental challenge will be a decades-long undertaking, and it will be important that the pipeline of future innovators remains full, just as it will be important for companies to invest in research and development activity and nurture scientific and engineering talent.