TED talks: a 40-year plan for energy – Amory Lovins

“What if we could make energy do our work without working our undoing?” ponders Amory Lovins, chief scientist at the Rocky Mountain Institute, in this week’s featured TED talk.

Lovins, who has worked in energy policy since the 70s, says the US can be coal and oil-free by 2050. A bold claim, but the key, he says, is integrating all four energy-using sectors – transport, buildings, industry and electricity – and four kinds of innovation.

“Fire made us human, fossil fuels made us modern,” he says, “but now we need a new fire that makes us safe, secure, healthy and durable.”

To watch this video on the TED website, click here.