Wealthy nations have benefitted from access to cheap energy, which fueled the industrial revolution and lifted populations into the middle class and beyond. That development has come at an environmental cost, and now the world’s emerging economies are facing a difficult question: can they lift their own people out of poverty quickly, without relying heavily on fossil fuels? The West must face another question: is it ethical to ask these countries to leapfrog to clean energy, if it means slowing life-saving economic growth? This debate will highlight the trade-offs—or false choices—between fostering economic growth in emerging economies, with the imperative to transition to a cleaner-energy future.
Session Description
Time & Location
Time:
10:00 AM - 11:15 AM, Thursday, April 6, 2017 BSTLocation:
Edmond Safra Lecture Theatre
Speakers
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SpeakerVice President, Observer Research FoundationSamir Saran is Vice President of the Observer Research Foundation. Samir spearheads ORF's outreach and business development activities. He is a frequent commentator on issues of global governance, including climate change and energy policy, global development, architecture, cyber security…
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SpeakerFounder, Foundation for Ecological SecurityJagdeesh Puppala is leading the Common Ground initiative as Chief Convener and is also the CEO of Living Landscapes, promoting systems leadership for environmental governance and resilient rural livelihoods. A dedicated practitioner, his entire career has focused on the sustainable management…
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ModeratorAssistant Editor, Guardian, TheI've been a journalist at the Guardian for 16 years, working across news and features. I'm now assistant editor of the Guardian, responsible for global stories such as the environment, science and health, as well as our philanthropically funded work. Recently I returned from two years running our…
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SpeakerFormer President, Republic of the Maldives,Mohamed Nasheed was the Maldives’ first democratically elected president. A former journalist, Nasheed led a campaign of non-violent, civil disobedience to win against Asia’s longest serving dictator in historic democratic polls in 2008. In February 2012, Nasheed was forced to resign as a…