ESC News

You are probably aware that your daily commute contributes to climate change. But just how much? In the latest post on the Energy Blog @ ETH Zurich, the authors offer a detailed look at the carbon footprint of various transport modes, from bicycles and scooters to cars and public transit. Learn how everyday choices can significantly affect your impact on the environment and discover more sustainable options for urban mobility.  

To meet net-zero targets by mid-century, gigatons of carbon dioxide (CO2) per year must be removed through direct air capture and storage (DACS). However, current deployment is low, requiring DACS technologies to be deployed at an unprecedented pace. The blog post explores the two most advanced capture methods used in DACS, compares their scalability, and stresses the significance of investing in multiple technologies over the next decade instead of solely relying on existing approaches.

America’s recently passed climate law provides strong support for accelerated adoption of clean vehicles in the US. Subsidies are generous for consumers looking to go electric, but only for vehicles that meet strict geographic requirements for critical mineral sourcing, battery manufacturing and vehicle assembly. Unabashedly, the US is seeking to shift the EV supply chain from China to North America, but at what cost?

The secret to getting through the energy crisis is that everyone in Europe does their part. And a bit of luck. In this post on the Energy Blog @ ETH Zurich, the author highlights some preliminary results from his investigation of the gas shortage in Europe – because winter is here but Russian gas is not. He models the optimal response to the gas crisis to outline a potential strategy for European countries to get through this daunting situation.

Despite the recent flood of (non-academic) studies claiming differently, battery-powered electric vehicles (BEV) already provide significant environmental benefits over internal combustion engine (ICE) cars. This gap is only widening, as policy, academia, and industry are coming together to rapidly improve BEVs and battery technology in particular.

In rural communities, women are the primary energy users as they are the ones performing household chores such as cooking and domestic work. For this reason, they are the most affected along with children from the use of highly-pollutant conventional fuels. Ironically, most of the time they are excluded from clean energy strategies targeted toward transitioning to clean fuels.

The Swiss federal council proposes to support large-scale solar PV with competitive auctions for one-off investment grants. This will not scale up solar PV investment to the extent necessary to reach the Swiss climate and energy targets. Léonore Hälg offers suggestions on how to improve the proposal in the newest post on the Energy Blog @ ETH Zurich.

Some time ago economists appropriated a method from medical research called randomized controlled trials, which has become the “golden standard” to detect causal effects of a policy intervention. Could they also assist in closing the energy efficiency gap? In the newest Energy Blog @ ETH article, Dr. Nina Boogen argues why they could, but also why they are not a universal remedy.

Findings from the Swiss Household and Energy Demand Survey shed new light on the willingness to live in a more energy-efficient building. Most surprisingly: more than 50% of the participating tenants would accept a higher rent increase than the expected savings from their energy bills after the renovation. Read more about it in the Energy Blog @ ETH Zurich.

Why we have already ‘crossed the bridge’, necessitating a phase-out and heavy divestment from natural gas. The solutions are reliable, cost-competitive, and ready – decarbonized renewable energy sources with storage. Read more about it in the Energy Blog @ ETH Zurich.

The energy-efficiency gap describes how firms and individuals underinvest in profitable energy-saving technologies. Will there be a similar gap for investments in renewables? Read more about it in the Energy Blog @ ETH Zurich.