Renewable and Sustainable Energy Institute

Summary: Through the development and analysis of in-depth case studies of the emergence of wind power industries in industrialized and emerging economies, a model of sustainable energy industry development is proposed. The model demonstrates that fundamental economic indicators are insufficient for explaining new industry development. Environmental, institutional and cultural factors idiosyncratic to individual jurisdictions play important roles in the emergence of renewable energy...

Robert Gramlich is Senior Vice President of Public Policy for the American Wind Energy Association, the national trade association of approximately 2,500 entities involved in all aspects of wind energy production, based in Washington D.C. Rob joined AWEA in 2005 and now leads the association’s strategic initiatives related to federal and state legislation, industry information and analysis, and regulatory policy. He has published articles on wind integration, carbon taxes, market power...

Summary: Diesel generators are the traditional means by which people generate electricity in remote locations. Throughout the world, there are many thousands of off-grid communities, industrial sites, and government facilities relying entirely on diesel generated electricity. At $4/gallon, the fuel component alone of diesel-generated electricity is high, about $0.30/kWh. Some remote locations pay over $8/gallon or $0.60/kWh. With diesel fuel prices projected to rise even higher in the long...

Summary: Energy impacts every aspect of our lives – yet energy remains a vast and complex subject. For the past two years I have been filming a major documentary on global energy. Based on personal visits to many of the world’s leading energy sites and conversations with top industry, academic and government leaders, I will look inside the complex world of energy and provide a realistic and balanced view of energy supply, demand, efficiency, infrastructure, and scale. All major forms of...

Offshore wind power can contribute extensively to a clean, robust, and diversified U.S. energy portfolio. Capturing the Nation's large and inexhaustible offshore wind resource has the potential to mitigate climate change, improve the environment, increase energy security, and stimulate the U.S. economy. This seminar provides a broad understanding of the global offshore wind industry today and the associated technology challenges, economics, permitting procedures, and potential risks and...

Renewable energy sources currently provide about only about 10% of the nation’s electricity, with most of that coming from large hydro sources. Renewable energy sources are scattered around the country, with much of the best wind and solar resources located in remote locations. These sources also may have a big footprint compared to conventional sources. Finally, solar and wind are often described as intermittent due to their variable and uncertain output. As a consequence, it is often...

The Center’s Director, Bill Ritter, was elected as Colorado’s 41st governor in 2006 - the first Colorado-born governor in more than 35 years. He quickly established Colorado as a national and international leader in clean energy by creating a New Energy Economy and tripling the state’s renewable energy portfolio. In a state with substantial fossil energy as well as renewable energy resources, Gov. Ritter created policies that balanced energy production with protection of air, land,...

Summary: Why have the predicted global oil and natural gas shortages and demise of civilization by 2010 related to these vanishing supplies not occurred? The static view has created a pessimistic outlook based on historical perspective such as the Hubbert curve analysis which results in the inescapable and inevitable depletion that will result in catastrophic consequences for civilization. A new paradigm, a dynamic or petroleum system view demonstrates a different and more optimistic...

Beginning with some background information on the unique German position regarding the energy supply eliminating any nuclear power by 2022 but enforcing the use of renewable energy sources, the challenges for both the building and the power generation sector will be highlighted. The talk will introduce opportunities to improve energy performance of buildings by new and innovative HVAC concepts as well as for increasing the penetration of renewable and environmental energy sources for heat and...

Reduction of carbon emissions and enhancement of national energy security are desirable goals. Discussions of how to realize these goals, however, generate a lot of heated debate – not all of it illuminating. An accelerated switch to renewable energy may seem like a logical push, yet the vastness of the global energy system is such that even the most optimistic scenarios for development of renewables are not going to bring about a cleaner atmosphere fast enough. Therefore, additional...