The best energy literature of the last five years
Keep track of the most important reading and authors that push the industry towards more efficient energy management and technological solutions.
A book by Pulitzer Prize-winning author Daniel Yergin will take you on an utterly timely journey of the vicious power of oil and gas and traditional energy systems being torn between nations’ geopolitical interests and climate change challenges getting more fierce every year. With simple words yet very accurately and deeply, the narrative goes to the core of how the modern energy industry is formed with its four main players – The U.S., Russia, China, and Middle East – and their very dissimilar goals and spheres of influence. Energy security, increasing environmental pressure, technological breakthroughs, and missing elements of the zero carbon future – Daniel sets it all straight in the most comprehensive and concise way.
“[The New Map] earned energy’s highest literary prize for its ambitious survey and realistic assessment of energy and how it shapes all of human affairs. It is also an exceptional literary triumph in its narrative and in the quality of writing that we have come to expect from Dan Yergin.”
— The American Energy Society, in awarding Daniel Yergin “Energy Writer of the Year”
An American Energy Society winner book 2021 written by Armstrong is an ultimate guide to clean energy systems along with challenges and opportunities associated with them. Giving critical thoughts on common discussion topics in the energy field, the author underlines the complexity and ambiguity of many competing theories and technologies. Home heating, air travel, industrial consumption – all of these impact climate in different ways and require a patchwork of technologies rather than one “silver bullet”. Thus, there is no simple and single answer to the challenges humanity is facing today but we’ll need various instruments to shape our future energy system. Written in a very clear and engaging manner, The Future of Energy is truly a textbook for those working in the industry as well as for inquisitive minds.
“This should be mandatory reading for future undergraduates and graduates as part of our induction process,”
– Darren, Senior Energy Manager.
Is hydrogen the missing link in the ambivalence of climate change problems and energy transition challenges? Marco Alvera believes that the needed hope for our future should be found in H2. Simple to produce, store and use, leaving only water as a by-product, hydrogen might be the very chance to solve energy dilemmas and reach the cherished net-zero goals.
“As pressure to tackle climate change grows, so has the idea that hydrogen will play a central role in a cleaner global energy system . . . [This] lively book is an engaging guide to a fuel that could go mainstream faster than expected.”
― Pilita Clark, Financial Times
“This book presents a vision for the future based on hydrogen and renewables that is clear, grounded and hopeful. It also provides crucial tools and information to fully understand the forces shaping the energy transition - and get involved.”
― Francesco La Camera, Director General of IRENA
In his Taming the Sun, Varum Sivaram makes a compelling case for the role solar energy will have in the new energy system. The author provides a comprehensive overview of the potential solar energy encompasses and technological solutions that will help to get the most from it. With the help of innovations, we’ll be able to build truly clean and eligible grids with a capacity to liberate us from vicious dependency on fossil fuel. To enable this, visionary public policy should take place and include funding researchers, refashioning economic markets, and bringing together diverse green energy portfolios. The book highlights both successes and obstacles that solar energy is facing today, and proposes ways to overcome those.
“The book is not gloomy. It lays out the history, promise, and pitfalls of solar technology with an easy-going lack of wonkishness. But it offers a sobering message that may be as prescient―and as readable―as Robert Shiller's Irrational Exuberance was before the dotcom and housing crises of the 2000s”
―The Economist
“The book is both the best available overview of where the industry finds itself today, and a road map for how it can reach that brighter future....”
―Financial Times
How did some countries manage to replace fossil fuels with clean energy without sacrificing their economic prosperity? This and other questions about climate change and the role of energy in it are being addressed by Goldstein Qvist. In their book, authors explore methods and best practices that can help nations pursue decarbonisation and sustainable development. Heavily relying on extensive technical reference, the book provides a solid discussion of climate change and energy transition.
“A Bright Future comes along at a critical time for our planet. Its key message: the climate is changing, the consequences are serious, and we can and must take action.”
— George P. Shultz, former Secretary of State
“A Bright Future lays out the only viable path that has been proposed for rapid global decarbonization.”
— James Hansen, Climate Scientist, former head of NASA Goddard Institute
Published a few months ago, the book gives an overview of the attempts to boost energy transition through policies and innovations. Daniel Cohan, professor of environmental engineering, combines his own experience with other experts' interviews to identify flaws in existing decarbonisation and climate change mitigation measures. Thus, the book is focused on finding actionable solutions rather than bringing up theoretical ideas and finger-pointing. Cohan highlights opportunities for more successful approaches and maps out a way forward for international and local bodies to enable efficient policies and energy market design.
“Daniel Cohan makes a compelling case that the problem of climate change is solvable. Fixing the gridlock on global action requires fixing the gridlock here in the United States of America. Cohan shows how that can be done.”
—David Victor, Professor of Innovation and Public Policy, the School of Global Policy and Strategy (GPS), UC San Diego.
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