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"Due to its reliance on fossil fuel, Australia's power system is now among the least resilient of its global competitors. The three part series, "Delivering a competitive Australian power system" seeks to address this issue. This paper, the final in a three part series examining the competitiveness of Australia's power system, seeks to identify a pragmatic strategy to transition Australia to a resilient power economy at reasonable cost and in an age of uncertainty. The resilience of a country's power economy refers to its ability to meet power requirements while withstanding supply shocks and environmental constraints. For a country's power economy to be competitive, it must be both affordable and resilient."

"A coal-fired power station in Canada is launching carbon capture and storage on a commercial scale. Could this make burning fossil fuels guilt-free?"

"Renewable energy such as wind, solar and hydro power could supply electricity at prices comparable to fossil fuels by 2030, according to a study commissioned by the federal government. Modelling by the Australian Energy Market Operator shows that 100 per cent of power from clean energy would be technically viable by 2030 - although with a price tag ranging from $219 billion to $252 billion."

"The technical solutions needed to reduce greenhouse gases at a speed capable of preventing catastrophic climate change are now well known. The recently launched University of Melbourne research report, Post Carbon Pathways shows the key features of the post-carbon economy road map are now widely understood. We need rapid replacement of fossil fuels by renewable energy; rapid reductions in energy consumption and improvements in energy efficiency; and the drawdown and sequestration of carbon into sustainable carbon sinks."

"Megan Clark has recruited Dr Maurice Moloney to the role of Group Executive, Food Health and Life Science Industries. Maurice brings with him a significant breadth of experience in the plant biotechnology area and a strong background in research delivery. Maurice will take up the role in November 2013. Dr Moloney has been the Director and Chief Executive of Rothamsted Research near London, UK since 2010.  Rothamsted is the oldest and largest agricultural research centre in Europe, with a mandate for food security, agricultural sustainability and adaptation of agriculture to the consequences of both climate change and depletion of fossil fuels."

"The way we generate, transfer and use energy is changing, and our energy systems and infrastructure have come under increasing pressure to cope. Black-outs strike where we would expect reliable supplies, energy costs are rising, pushed up by fossil fuel prices and the expense of renewing ageing electricity infrastructure. As the proportion of energy generated from renewables like wind, wave and solar power rises, part of the solution to such intermittently generated energy is technology that can store the energy until it is needed."

A new paper shows which companies extracted the carbon-based fuels that have caused climate change. Hover and click to explore

As it sheds a dirtier, oil-dependent past, Scandinavia has become a mecca for green energy, design and policy, boasting some of the world's most efficient buildings, lowest fossil fuel use and boldest emission targets.

"In its draft form, the fought-over paragraph declared that, to have the best chance of not exceeding the international target for global warming of 3.6 degrees Fahrenheit, society can burn no more than about 1 trillion tons of carbon, in the form of fossil fuels, and spew the resulting gases into the atmosphere. More than half that carbon budget has been used already. Moreover, the draft made it clear that if countries want to be safe and take account of other gases that are warming the planet, the carbon budget would be even less than a trillion tons. At the rate things are going, we will exceed the budget in 30 years or fewer."

"Superannuation (or pension) funds represent the single largest pool of money in the world, more than $30 trillion. What does that have to do with climate change? Taking a more active role in our investments and how they are managed represents a huge opportunity for securing a more sustainable, low-carbon future. This report consolidates analysis and review of the impact of climate and carbon risks on superannuation savings. It builds on work The Climate Institute has done with its partner organisation the Asset Owners Disclosure Project (AODP) and looks at the emerging civil economy movement, in the context of fossil fuel divestment campaigns and activism activities such as the The Vital Few campaign. On this page you'll find the report and related content including infographics, videos, podcasts, photo essays and presentations. "

"These results for 2013 reveal just how strongly China is swinging behind renewables as its primary energy resource. This is consistent with the 12th Five Year Plan (running from 2011 to 2015) which projects that China will be generating 30% of its electric power from non-fossil sources overall by 2015. This is a level far higher than comparable industrialized countries."

"Innovation in solar, wind and other renewable power is booming worldwide, especially in China, and is now eclipsing that in fossil fuels - an about-face that occurred in just one generation, new research shows."

"Passive solar architectural principles have come of age. They have given rise to thousands of buildings of all sizes and purposes around the world, in all climate types, to demonstrate how buildings don't need to consume fossil fuel energy to support their occupants. They can even generate more power, or absorb more carbon, than they use. Below is a ten-step guide to how to go about designing and building one."

"When we talk about greenhouse gases we usually talk about carbon dioxide. When media reports depict climate change, we invariably see the cooling towers of a coal power station. Which is fair, because carbon dioxide, or CO2, is the big one: nearly 75% of Australia's total greenhouse gas emissions are carbon dioxide. Most of those come from the energy sector and the combustion of fossil fuels. But there are other gases involved in the greenhouse story. Methane and nitrous oxide are also contributors to Australia's greenhouse gas account. And both have a much greater impact on the atmosphere in terms of global warming than carbon dioxide."

"As the world slowly wakes up to the need to electrify personal transport, the range of electric vehicles is starting to ramp up. Lance Turner looks at how Australia is doing in the move away from fossil fuels, and which EVs you can buy now and in the near future."

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