Last updated on March 11th, 2024 at 05:04 am
Fresh from publishing Electrify in 2021, a plan for decarbonising the US economy, Saul Griffith has returned to Australia after 20 years. Earlier this year, the Big Switch was published to give Australia its own plan to transform its economy to zero carbon.
At the heart of Griffith’s plan is to take advantage of Australia’s high solar irradiation levels and strong coastal winds to generate immense amounts of electricity to replace our dependence on coal and gas for electricity production.
The Big Switch is an evidence based plan to explain how we can convert to a zero carbon economy in one generation (20 years). Griffith sees this conversion process as a simple substitution process where fossil fuel inputs are replaced with renewable energy inputs.
Griffith does this by exhaustively analysing Australia’s residential, commercial and industrial energy use, then demonstrating how we can harness the continent’s renewable potential to replace the fossil fuel inputs which power our economy.
In the scheme of energy potential, electricity stands out as a high quality source of power. Griffith points out that in the home, devices powered by electricity deliver better energy efficiencies. For example, a home using a modern reverse cycle air conditioner can heat and cool a home using less energy. The substitution here is removing the use of natural gas to heat in winter.
As part of the book launch, The Australia Institute hosted a webinar: The Big Switch with Saul Griffith. In this presentation, Griffith discussed his basic argument for an all-electric economy along with Dan Cass, who provided input into the policy section of the book.
The beauty of this book
The beauty of this book is that it arrived immediately after the political wars of the last 10 years which stifled good renewable energy policy. It presents a complex energy transition in simple terms so that most Australians can understand the long term goal of a fossil free economy. And it does so without burdening us overwhelmingly with guilt. Griffith lays out a roadmap for a successful transition to an all electic economy with hope for a brighter future.
Book details
Griffith S, 2022, The Big Switch, Black Inc, Sydney.
Griffith, S 2021, Electrify: An optimist’s playbook for our clean energy future, MIT Press, Cambridge.