Traditionally, world leaders have focused on cutting emissions in large, developed countries. Too little attention has been paid to energy-poor countries, home to half the world’s population but far fewer investments in renewable energy technologies. Eager to develop, these countries are working to support their growing populations with the energy access and economic opportunities they deserve. Unfortunately, these countries could account for up to 75 percent of global emissions by 2050 if we do not act swiftly and aggressively to ensure a green trajectory for their growth.

The only way to stimulate a just economic recovery and stop the trajectory of the climate crisis is to promote green energy transitions in these low- and middle-income countries. Humanity can take the steps to make these transitions a reality if we build dynamic partnerships with bold leadership and high ambitions. No single institution can do it alone. Public-private partnerships, like Gavi and PEPFAR in the public health space, have demonstrated a special ability to meet global challenges and correct market failures.

That’s why The Rockefeller Foundation, IKEA Foundation, and Bezos Earth Fund launched the Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet last fall at the UN Climate Change Conference in Glasgow, Scotland.
Alongside a dozen public and private partners—including national governments, development finance institutions, and delivery providers from around the world—the alliance aims to catalyze our initial $10 billion investment to $100 billion over the next decade. We will marshal the big investments, technical support, and regulatory changes needed to scale up the latest technological advances in energy-poor countries across Asia, sub-Saharan Africa, and Latin America.

Our goals are ambitious: we aim to extend clean, productive-use energy to one billion underserved people, create or support hundreds of millions of green jobs, and avoid and avert over four billion tons of emissions.

We will meet these goals by building a pipeline of transformational projects that support the decommissioning and repurposing of fossil fuel plants, utility-wide adoption of renewable energy, and reliable, productive-use power for off-grid and underserved communities.

Read the full article about energy equity by Sundaa Bridgett-Jones at The Rockefeller Foundation.