A Change We Can Believe In
Dec. 11, 2008
The slumping U.S. economy is the top story these days and is covered in this issue with respect to its impact on government labs, funding, and the world of R&D. Energy is another hot topic as well, with fluctuating fuel prices, the environmental impact of fuels, and climate change being the hot-button topics. Uniting these issues is President-elect Barack Obama and his clean-energy initiatives. In an interview with Time in October, Obama observes that, “from a purely economic perspective, finding the new driver of our economy is going to be critical. There is no better potential driver that pervades all aspects of our economy than a new energy economy.”
Obama has a comprehensive plan for developing this new energy economy. It is focused on promoting renewable energy, clean-technology jobs, and energy efficiency. He will push for efficiency and renewable energy early on in his administration, laying the groundwork for far-reaching initiatives that would be difficult to fund in the near future due to the current state of the economy.
Energy efficiency is the cheapest, cleanest, fastest energy source, according to Obama. His goal in this area is to reduce electricity demand 15% from projected levels by 2020 by modernizing the power grid and implementing green building technologies in federal and other buildings.
The renewable energy initiative will mandate that utilities get 10% of their power from renewable sources such as wind, solar, or geothermal by 2012 and 25% by 2025. Obama will lead by example: at least 30% of the federal government's electricity is to come from renewable sources by 2020. In addition, the Obama administration will invest in upgrading the power grid to make it easier for everyone to use these renwable energy sources.
Obama has plans for autos as well. He will push to have one million plug-in hybrid cars, which, through advances in fuel efficiency, could potentially get up to 150 mpg, hit the road by 2015. He intends to create up to $7,000 in tax credits for purchasing these advanced vehicles.
On the financial side, Obama plans to invest $150 billion over 10 years to help create five million new clean-energy jobs. He wants to invest in basic research and human capital, double federal science and research funding for clean energy projects, and invest in job training and transition programs to help workers and industries adapt to clean technology development and production. He also plans to create a clean technologies venture capital fund to partner with existing investment funds and our national laboratories to ensure that promising clean technologies move beyond the lab and are commercialized in the U.S.
Clearly, these are changes we in the R&D world can believe in, yet we must also believe that Obama’s united research policy will drive our economy forward. His conviction gives me hope that we have his continued support well past Inauguration Day.
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