There have been recent arguments on the necessity for a transition into renewable energy. Some say that since the industrial class is mostly responsible for carbon emissions, not to mention the environmental waste released from the industries, they should be burdened with the transition into renewable energy sources instead of everyone else. This ideology further breeds the need to make renewables affordable.
Being that the above opinion stems from the fact that when people hear ‘renewable energy’, they think ‘expensive’, it is important to reduce the prices of these energy sources and increase awareness on how cheap they are. On the streets of Nigeria, for example, there is the general thought that renewable energy sources such as solar are very pricey, and so only big industries and corporations can and should afford them.
Although at the introduction of renewables to the world, they were quite expensive, their prices have reduced. However, there still is the need to make renewables cheaper and also to sensitise the public how affordable they become alongside the benefits.
The affordability of renewable energy sources such as solar home systems (SHS), would not only help the world transition faster into cleaner sources of energy and help address the global warming issue, but through the creation of workshops/training centres would increase the entrepreneurship and employment opportunities and more people would be lifted out of poverty.
The need to make renewables affordable does more for the economy than just presenting alternatives to fossil fuels as energy sources. It actively opens windows for empowerment and investment that would help any country grow.
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