[caption id="attachment_2505" align="alignleft" width="440"] Geothermal and COP20[/caption] Latin America and the Caribbean leads the world in renewable energy. Hydropower makes up 60 percent of the generation matrix. Still, there is vast untapped potential for low-carbon energy development. One long-established source of renewable energy that has yet to reach its full potential is geothermal in Latin America and the Caribbean.
Como alguien que trabaja en desarrollo internacional, a menudo participo en debates sobre igualdad de género. Lamentamos que haya muy poca participación de mujeres emprendedoras, clientes de bancos, líderes políticos y directoras ejecutivas.
Did you know that when Alexander Graham Bell invented the telephone, his initial idea was to develop a device for people to hear live orchestra? The world undoubtedly changed when it was introduced. But it was actually the consumers who turned it into a different innovation, preferring to call friends and family than listen to music. This is just one example how innovation and science are transforming society.
I recently attended the Regional Global Green Growth Forum (3GF) in Latin America and the Caribbean in Santiago, Chile. At this forum and in the business world, we witness how issues of sustainability and green growth are transforming the real economy. In the coming years in Chile, non-conventional renewable energy will make up more than 70% of new installed capacity. In Brazil, the second auction round for solar drew more than 2 GW in bids for investments of almost $3 billion. And in Costa Rica, hundreds of companies have small-scale power generation systems, as part of the country’s distributed generation power plan.
On the big island in Hawaii, the sun shines 168 days of the year. In Honolulu, it jumps to 271 days of sunshine. That’s the perfect market to launch a new partnership between solar panel supplier SolarCity and electric carmaker Tesla Motors.
There are many encouraging signs emerging from Jamaica these days. Three of the major rating agencies provide a positive outlook for the economy, consumer confidence reached a two-year peak in 2014, and lower oil prices are helping to cut energy costs and improve the fiscal accounts. What this means is increased investment opportunities in a country that is proudly emerging from a period of economic hardship.