Ha Noi, Viet Nam, 13 May 2017 – Energy officials from the 21 APEC member economies have selected the Asia-Pacific’s top green innovations for 2017, redefining standards for clean, efficient energy use and powering improved living conditions and economic opportunities across the world’s largest energy consuming region.
Successfully adopted technologies and approaches – from ultra-responsive traffic fighting systems to solar powered cities and advanced metering that enables low-income consumers to better manage energy use and reduce their energy bills – were evaluated as part of a multi-year APEC Energy Smart Communities Initiative. The project details have been made publically accessible to facilitate their replication as well as the engineering of new innovations.
It lays the groundwork for complementary measures being developed this week by APEC Senior Officials in Ha Noi to realize measurably sustainable cities.
“APEC economies are continuing to actively work towards our ambitious goals of doubling the share of renewable energy in the region by 2030 and reducing our energy intensity by 45 per cent by 2035,” said Dr Jyuung-Shiauu Chern, Lead Shepherd of the APEC Energy Working Group, which administers regional policy collaboration within the sector.
“The innovations and performance data we are seeing in the Asia-Pacific in terms of clean and efficient energy use are encouraging,” noted Dr Chern, who is also Chief of Energy Affairs at Chinese Taipei’s Bureau of Energy. “By building awareness of standout projects and making information about them readily available, we aim to lay the foundation for further progress.”
Some 200 public and private sector projects from across the region were reviewed this year under the APEC Energy Smart Communities Initiative, with focus on their goals, implementation and outcomes. Gold and silver rankings were awarded in five categories: smart transport, buildings, grids, jobs and consumers, as well as cross-cutting low carbon model towns.
“Boosting job-creating, high-growth industries and better living standards through greater innovation and environmental sustainability is at the center of APEC’s policy agenda,” said Dr Alan Bollard, Executive Director of the APEC Secretariat. “Highlighting proven, economically and socially desirable energy smart projects is more than just good optics. It demonstrates that they are very worth pursuing and helps empower businesses and governments to take action.”
“There are many examples of effective renewable energy integration, efficiency inroads and carbon emission-reducing practices in the Asia-Pacific,” concluded Alon Abramson of the Penn Institute for Urban Research, which, together with the Taiwan Institute of Economic Research, manages the APEC Energy Smart Communities Initiative’s Knowledge Sharing Platform. “APEC is making it easier for them to become more mainstream.”