28 Energy Poverty
Without cheap, safe, low-carbon energy sources at scale we are stuck between the alternatives of high greenhouse gas emissions and energy poverty.
The world lacks safe, low-carbon, and cheap large-scale energy alternatives to fossil fuels. Until we scale up those alternatives the world will continue to face the two energy problems of today. The energy problem that receives most attention is the link between energy access and greenhouse gas emissions. But the world has another global energy problem that is just as big: hundreds of millions of people lack access to sufficient energy entirely, with terrible consequences to themselves and the environment.
The richest 1% in the EU emit on average 43 tonnes of CO2 annually – 9-times as much as the global average of 4.8 tonnes. The problem is larger for the extremely rich.
The only countries that have emissions that are close to zero are those where the majority suffers from energy poverty.