July 12, 2002

World Renewable Energy Conference report and the Johannesburg Summit on Sustainable Development

Dear GENI Friend,

First, we are quite late with this month's report. Having just returned from two international events and a short vacation pushed the normal schedule back a couple of weeks.

The World Renewable Energy Conference provided several encouraging developments. With participation from over 100 nations, it's clear that renewable energy is gaining traction on all continents. A couple of meetings are noteworthy. I met with the Energy Minister from Yemen, an oil-rich yet war-ravaged nation on the Saudi Arabian peninsula. He said that 70% of their population lacked electrical services, and that landmines still ring the major population centers. When asked why he was attending, the Minister stated that renewables, and in his case solar, is the future of energy. We spoke extensively about large scale solar development by all Arab nations, as all are blessed with abundant, and perfect conditions for photovoltaic arrays.

We also discussed the hydropower potential of Nepal with the US A.I.D.(Agency for International Development) specialist. While this Himalayan country is presently in it's own civil conflict and leadership turmoil, the nation was over 80,000MW of hydro-potential. Today, only 500MW is currently being used! His statement was that Nepal could be a rich country from this renewable resource — from both domestic use and sales of electricity to India, China and Bangladesh.

There remains a huge gap between what's possible with renewables and the present condition. Coming next month is the Johannesburg Summit on Sustainable Development in South Africa. The world's leaders are meeting for a 10 year review of the Earth Summit, and will hopefully recommit to those goals. While you and I live in relative abundance, half our world struggles daily for survival. Your support of the GENI Initiative is dedicated to changing that condition.

In partnership for the planet,

Peter Meisen
President

p.s. GENI will be exhibiting at the NGO Forum in Johannesburg: August 26 - Sept 4. If you can help support us in this global event, please contribute generously. If you would like to participate with us, go to Worldsummit Organization for information—then give us a call!

Keywords:world renewable energy conference report and the Johannesburg Summit on sustainable development,renewables,the future of energy.renwable resource,sustainable development, global energy network institute, international electricity transmission, grid.