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Rapid economic growth in Asia recently has been driving global energy demand and prices. However, little progress has been made concerning the region’s energy security. To assess Asia’s progress in energy security and its impact on real income per capita growth, the 4-As energy security framework — energy availability, applicability, affordability and acceptability dimensions — is integrated into the cross-country generalized method of moments (GMM) model and empirically estimated using data from 20 Asian countries (1995–2015). Results indicate that energy security measured by expanding renewable energy use, increase in electricity access and electric power consumption per capita growth are positively associated with real income per capita growth, while a larger share of imported energy and higher energy intensity hinder growth. Meanwhile, climate security is included in the energy security framework; the results suggest that an increase in CO₂ emissions has a negative impact on economic growth. Possible policy implications for improving energy security in Asia are discussed in the conclusion.

Energy security, a multidimensional concept that encompasses the notion of resource availability, accessibility, environmental acceptability and cost affordability, has been widely discussed. However, the same cannot be said about energy insecurity, a concept that may not necessarily mirror energy security, but also comprises the various consequences of energy unavailability. Energy insecurity mostly affects the poorest and can lead to deepened inequalities and poor health at the household level. One solution for tackling energy insecurity could be adoption of renewable energy. Power generated from renewable sources could help in mitigating energy price fluctuations and reduce health issues, as well as encourage stable economic growth. This special issue discusses the interaction between the three concepts through careful case studies and panel analysis and proposes various policy implications for energy policymakers. This introductory paper introduces the articles selected for this special issue.

We note the emergence of a new type of intermediary organization, which functions at system or network level, in contrast to traditional intermediary organizations that operate mainly bilaterally. These "systemic intermediaries" are important in long-term and complex changes, such as "transitions" to sustainable development, which require the coordinated effort of industry, policy makers, research institutes and others. We use the Systems of Innovation approach to characterize the roles of traditional and systemic intermediary organizations. A review of recent changes in innovation systems points to the need of more systemic efforts, such as the articulation of needs and options, the alignment of relevant actors and the support of learning processes. In a phase model of transitions additional roles of systemic intermediaries are identified. A case study of the Californian Fuel Cell Partnership shows how the efforts of systemic intermediaries in encompassing systemic innovations are useful and necessary, but not sufficient.

A sustainable electric power system (EPS) is designed in this paper. First, a protocol is given, via which Maxwell's demon transfers green energy into optimally secure and efficient EPS. Then a morphogenesis scheme (design) of a homeostatic demon is determined, so that the demon can achieve sustainable EPS stability. It is shown that synchronization protocol complicates the sustainable EPS and that the beneficial design transforms the sustainable EPS in a complex community. A sustainability test is introduced for the sake of coping with the issue in the sense the test serves to determine the EPS is indeed sustainable.

Energy security is a highly contested concept since there is no common agreement about what it means and what elements it should include. On the contrary, the current academic literature is overloaded with a broad spectrum of conceptual and operational definitions of energy security. Nonetheless, in many respects, all these new concepts are essentially the intellectual development of the initial position on energy security as reliable supplies of energy at reasonable prices. Indeed, the essence of energy security is the question of where we are able to get the energy from and what societal costs—economic, political, and environmental—we are ready to pay for it. Since all societal costs are essentially value-laden, any debate about energy security involves assessment of not only technical indicators such as share of imported energy sources or diversity of energy mix but also national values and objectives. A good conceptualization of energy security should thus be built around it.

This chapter attempts to explore the weak points in the energy system that prevent Viet Nam from achieving energy security. Fundamental impediments are the lack of energy inefficiency in major industries, especially in export-oriented manufacturing and transport. Moreover, the insecurity is also derived from the growing reliance on fossil fuel import for thermal power generation that threatens local environment, thus having an adverse impact on climate change process. Extreme reliance on fossil fuel import created a significant risk in the energy supply security for the country. In addition, with the phasing out of all nuclear power stations and still negligible contribution of renewables (except hydropower) in the electricity grid, primary energy supply is less diversified, and it is forecast that half of electricity generation will be derived from coal by 2030. The implication is that improving energy efficiency in energy-intensive sectors must be the top priority for achieving energy security in the country, in which transport leaves a huge room for energy-use enhancement. In addition, reducing the barriers in renewable energy financing to attract more private investment is essential to unlock the potential of renewables deployment that brings multiple benefits for securing national energy and reducing carbon emissions.

The chapter centers on the energy policies of two Central Asian member countries of CAREC — Kazakhstan and the Kyrgyz Republic. Such a focus enables comprehension of the pertinent issues in energy security for this entire region. The two nations have dissimilar energy profiles, and thus each serves a representative of a respective group. The first group is formed by the Central Asian countries who are amply endowed with hydrocarbon resources, but poor in hydropower resources (Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan). The second group is made up of the Central Asian countries who are richly endowed with hydro resources but deprived of hydrocarbon resources (the Kyrgyz Republic and Tajikistan). Despite these two groups reveal complementary characteristic in terms of resource endowment, which suggests a case for synergy, reality differs from such a rational setting. The chapter analyzes the problems that the groups’ representatives, Kazakhstan and the Kyrgyz Republic, encounter in the realm of energy security. A comparative analysis of the respective nations’ uncoordinated energy policies is presented. It is argued that the national energy security of an individual Central Asian state is inseparable from energy security of the entire Central Asian region because it is embedded into a broader regional context of resource sharing and nexus thinking. The dimensions for regional and international cooperation toward enhanced energy security in Central Asia are discussed.

The mission of Interfaith Power & Light (IPL) is to inspire people of faith and conscience to take bold and just action on climate change.

For two decades, IPL has been helping congregations address global warming by being better stewards of energy. The campaign has a track record of tangible results: shrinking carbon footprints and educating hundreds of thousands of people in congregations about the important role of people of faith in addressing this most challenging issue…

As we search to achieve sustainable development and substance, energy security and efficiency should be viewed not only from the perspective of addressing short-term challenges, but also as a necessity for long-term growth of the economy. Latterly, some articles have majored on selecting the best energy policy and arbitrating the best energy alternatives. In this paper, AHP, VIKOR, PROMETHEE and TOPSIS approaches are suggested for the selection among energy policies. The methodology is based on these four methods under a comparison. In the application of the proposed methodologies, the best energy policy is determined for Turkey.

Conventional economic analysis of energy systems is just not sufficient or even misleading in understanding the implications of the emerging energy innovations and the challenges for the design of energy and climate policies. We stress that it is essential to move from the usual black-box approach of energy modeling to deepened structural specifications which are based on the full value chain of an energy system. We explain this argument by looking at conventional approaches to energy modeling, in particular in the context of econometrics. We then demonstrate by using data for China, the United States, and the European Union, how an appropriate energy data analysis can provide insights into the structure of energy systems. Finally, we explain in a nutshell the building blocks of a deepened structural modeling approach which enables to tackle the new challenges; radical technological innovations, a very long time horizon, and the accompanying new designs for business and regulation.

The energy consumption at rural household in china has accounted for significant portion of our power usage. In Beijing alone, the capital of China, although the rural household accounts for only about 14% of the inhabitants, they responsible for nearly 30% of the energy consumption, so much as the issue of sustainable energy has taken on extra urgency when Beijing were covered in smog. The article studies the energy usage pattern in rural Beijing households, and base on the finding to put forward plan for sustainable energy policy to manage the countryside to develop a sustainable energy model.