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The aim of our council is to empower our delegation to compare and contrast what works and what doesn't when it comes to dealing with a new phase of energy crises dominated by discussions surrounding geopolitical tensions, sanctions, and trade wars (rather than infrastructure failure; like that seen during natural disasters in developing nations) and along the way, develop solutions to specific problems in order to arrive at a more long-term and concrete solution to energy crises.
Countries will be less diverted from their goals, especially those outlined for them in the UNFCCC or SDG 7, with a more formal and actionable framework in mind for them to handle their own energy challenges. With a defined vision, countries will be sure to have a stronger positive impact with time.
One of the clearest ways to solve both issues at the same time is to further incentivize focus on alternative energy sources - a theme continuing in the last two Conference of Parties (COPs) ever since Russia's invasion of Ukraine caused a natural gas shortage throughout Europe through geopolitical tensions and sanctions imposed on the Russian Federation.
The following is a summary of points that our council will have to consider while drafting their framework and solutions:
● How is implementation going to be done? What are the key costs to consider? Who'll help with funding? What are some good centres to start out with when it comes to research and development?
● Are there any checks and balances that can be used? A marked example would be windfall taxes, but others (such as curbing lobbying efforts through policy change) exist.
● What happened with achieving SDG 7? (especially given that 2030, the end date, is roughly seven years away.).
● And finally, what are the passive factors impacting the implementation of alternative energy sources? Two prominent areas here are greenwashing and climate denialism, with the former being especially relevant considering that about a quarter of the United States Congress (139 out of 535) are sceptical, if not complete deniers.
To reiterate, our council believes the focus on this new phase of energy crises will help tackle the primary contributor to humanity's carbon footprint, non-renewable energy, and be a major step towards solving the climate crisis. |
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Siddhant Pradhan |
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