Transferring power: how accelerating equity can support the energy transition

The document highlights that while over a trillion US dollars have been allocated to the clean energy transition, funding remains concentrated in advanced economies. It argues that a just transition requires redistributing both energy and decision-making power, ensuring resources reach the most vulnerable, and enabling local value creation in developing countries to overcome resistance to power transfer and systemic mistrust.

• Despite significant investment, clean energy funding is primarily led by advanced economies to consolidate their own energy security and position, leaving the equity of these improvements lacking.
• Achieving a just energy transition requires a redistribution of two specific types of power: energy power and decision-making power.
• Resource flows for the energy transition often fail to reach the most needy populations in appropriate forms; however, success has been seen in Mozambique and Tanzania through sustainable supply and distribution models for solar lighting.
• To achieve energy justice, the current trend of Official Development Assistance (ODA) nations financing projects in recipient countries must shift toward empowering local communities and developing countries to secure their own energy production.
• The document advocates for breaking down sectoral siloes and fostering multi-stakeholder collaboration across energy, agri-food, and water sectors to improve system performance and equity.

APA

O'Connell, S. (2024). Transferring power: how accelerating equity can support the energy transition. World Economic Forum. https://www.weforum.org/stories/energy-transition/transferring-power-how-accelerating-equity-can-support-the-energy-transition/

Chicago

O'Connell, Simon. Transferring power: how accelerating equity can support the energy transition. World Economic Forum, 2024. https://www.weforum.org/stories/energy-transition/transferring-power-how-accelerating-equity-can-support-the-energy-transition/.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |last1=O'Connell |first1=Simon |title=Transferring power: how accelerating equity can support the energy transition |publisher=World Economic Forum |date=17 January 2024 |url=https://www.weforum.org/stories/energy-transition/transferring-power-how-accelerating-equity-can-support-the-energy-transition/ |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{oconnell2024transferring, author = {O'Connell, Simon}, title = {{Transferring power: how accelerating equity can support the energy transition}}, publisher = {World Economic Forum}, year = {2024}, month = jan, url = {https://www.weforum.org/stories/energy-transition/transferring-power-how-accelerating-equity-can-support-the-energy-transition/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }