Reorienting the Economy to the Rhythms of Nature: Learning to Live with Intermittent Energy Supply

In much current thinking about the necessary and rapid transition to a carbon‐emissions‐free energy system, there is implicit acceptance of the high‐tech, high‐energy nature of the current economy. But by asking deeper questions about this economy, we reveal new opportunities as well as new challenges. First, throughout most of history, both production and consumption were dramatically influenced by the weather, and activities were undertaken or curtailed according to varying availability of energy. In the future, if we again adjust energy demand to such intermittent supplies wherever and whenever possible, we can nevertheless benefit from many scientific and technological advantages that our ancestors did not have centuries ago. Second, in the pursuit of highly energy‐efficient machines that might become new sources of highly concentrated energy, we have begun to rely on “clean energy” machinery made in significant part from non‐recyclable materials. With our current generation of wind turbines, for example, we have sacrificed sustainability in the pursuit of a supposedly renewable‐energy system. By contrast, if we reduce our need for always‐on energy sources by adjusting energy demand to intermittent energy supply, we can greatly reduce the overall energy infrastructure needed, and we will face less pressure to sacrifice sustainability.