Embracing the circular economy

SUSTAINABILITY and climate disruption continue to trouble the world. News from the ongoing COP (Conference of the Parties) meeting in Baku, Azerbaijan, tells us that the world is not on the right path. All the promises and pledges made at previous COP meetings have not been fulfilled. No wonder the United Nations recently released a report saying we are behind in delivering the SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals). If the new US administration sticks to the rhetoric that climate change is a hoax, we will see further straying away from the agreed path made in Paris in 2015. We must remember that the US, as the largest world economy, remains the biggest emitter of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere.

There is no denying the critical role of the economy in driving the rise in GHG (greenhouse gas) emissions. Few would disagree that energy choice is a major influence. All the research studies point to fossil fuels as the culprit. However, it is not easy to phase out fossil fuels since they are still the cheapest and most abundant. Furthermore, the technologies that convert fossil fuels into energy have already been well-tested and proven. Changing is not easy. This explains the hesitancy of the world, especially countries that thrive on oil and gas, to even transition away. Phasing out is out of the question. They cite economic justice as the rationale.