Decentralised energy as a contribution to peace

The energy transition as a peacemaker for us all

Decentrally generated renewable energy helps reduce conflicts over limited resources and promotes independence from fossil fuels, which are often linked to geopolitical conflicts. The transition to renewable forms of energy is therefore the best peace project in the world. It reduces dependence on fossil fuels, relieves – ideally – central distribution via power grids and thus lays the foundation for peaceful coexistence everywhere on our planet.

The Global Conflict Tracker shows that the regions with the most armed conflicts, such as Africa and the Middle East, are rich in mineral resources such as oil, gas, cobalt, copper, uranium and gold. These regions are often affected by conflicts over fossil energy. This can be traced back to high global demand resulting from our continuing dependence on energy from fossil resources. Although there are many causes of crises and wars, such as oppressed minorities and religious reasons, it is striking time and again that disputes over fossil raw materials are the most common cause of armed conflict between states. The Heidelberg Institute for International Conflict Research has found that fossil energy is the most common cause of conflict when wars are fought over raw materials, followed by conflicts over fishing rights and water.

The gradual conversion of the world’s energy supply to 100% renewable energy should therefore be a central element of peace policy. It helps avoid conflicts over fossil fuels. Renewable energy thus also has a transformative power that goes far beyond the mere generation of energy. Its use also supports local development in previously less developed regions and can help make them more liveable.

From today’s perspective, despite its advantages, decentralising the energy supply on the basis of known technologies still has drawbacks and needs further development. Generating (German) and using electricity and heat close to the consumer is an advantage. It creates greater security of supply and efficiency while reducing dependence on central energy producers. The drawbacks are the (high) investment required in infrastructure and in systems for intelligent control, so that the fluctuations in wind and solar generation do not lead to supply uncertainty or even grid failures. These have to be balanced by expensive storage and back-up systems.

The breakthrough would be decentralised, baseload-capable generation of renewable energy at the point of consumption. Neutrinovoltaic® could be this breakthrough in the world of renewable energy. This technology uses the energy of neutrinos and other radiation invisible to us to generate electrical energy.

This innovation has the potential to fundamentally change the way we generate energy today and to enable a truly sustainable and decentralised energy supply. Neutrinovoltaic® should therefore be regarded as a pioneering technology that obtains clean and sustainable energy in an innovative way and brings us closer to a world in which we can live peacefully in harmony with nature. Neutrinovoltaics offers several advantages over other renewable energies:

• Independence from environmental conditions:

  Neutrinovoltaic® is not affected by environmental changes or seasonal fluctuations, since neutrinos penetrate almost all materials and the technology can generate energy continuously, regardless of whether the sun is shining or the wind is blowing.

• No energy storage systems required:

  Unlike other renewable energies, Neutrinovoltaic® does not need energy storage systems. Even on a modest scale, the technology can relieve other renewable energy sources, as it does not need batteries to store the electricity generated.

• Decentralised applications:

  Neutrinovoltaic® can be integrated directly into devices, vehicles and boats, making the transport of electricity over long distances unnecessary. This decentralised applicability makes the technology attractive and versatile.

• Continuous energy generation:

  Neutrinovoltaic® technology can generate electricity around the clock all year round, since neutrinos penetrate the Earth’s surface regardless of climatic conditions.

The continuity of energy generation and its easy cascading is the breakthrough compared with established solar and wind power plants. As already reported, these forms of energy are milestones on the way to baseload-capable renewable energy generation.

Conclusion:

A policy oriented towards peaceful solutions must promote such a development – not only because it requires a fraction of the investment, but also in order to reduce global disputes over fossil resources for energy generation. That is a contribution to peace and to the good of all people.