Renewable energy technologies
play an important role in the U.S. Government’s strategy
to respond to the challenges of climate change, energy security
and local air pollution. Now, more than ever, nations fully
recognize the imperative to promote wide spread adoption
of renewable energy such as biomass, biofuels, wind, solar,
geothermal, and hydro energies into their country’s
energy sources to promote sustained economic growth, social
development and environmental stewardship.
The Washington International Renewable Energy
Conference (WIREC) 2008 comprises multiple events: a global
ministerial-level meeting, a trade show and a business conference;
and official side events. WIREC 2008’s three components
are inter-related: The Ministerial-level meetings will ensure
time for participants to tour the separately-managed, but
co-located, trade show/expo and business conference and
for networking. Registered trade show and/or Ministerial
Level meeting participants will be able to reserve rooms
at special rates and attend WIREC’s Official Side
Events.
Hosted by the United States Government,
and in cooperation with the American Council on Renewable
Energy, WIREC 2008 is the third global ministerial-level
conference on renewable energy, following events in Beijing
in 2005 and Bonn in 2004. WIREC 2008 will bring together
government, civil society and private business leaders to
address the benefits and costs of a major and rapid scale-up
in the global deployment of renewable energy technology.
WIREC 2008 will also provide policy makers from all levels
of government a robust menu of policy options and practical
measures that have been proven successful in accelerating
the diffusion of renewable energy technologies.
About WIREC 2008
WIREC 2008 will provide a forum to discuss
the linkages between energy and climate change and provide
a menu of technological options for reducing greenhouse
gas emissions through expanded use of renewable energy.
This administration has emphasized the need to get promising
clean energy technologies off the laboratory shelves and
into the market place. WIREC 2008 will demonstrate how the
U.S. is accomplishing this, as well as the successes of
industry, other governments and civil society from around
the world. WIREC 2008 will play a major role in advancing
on-the-ground implementation of renewables through the exchange
of best practices and dissemination of a wide range of policy
and financing options.
One of the concrete outcomes of WIREC 2008
will be the Washington International Action Plan (WIAP).
The WIAP is intended to showcase policy efforts and initiatives
that will encourage widespread adoption of renewable energy.
While the Bonn conference took place during the 'start-up
phase' of renewables, WIREC 2008 heralds a maturing phase
in which scaling-up of renewable energy deployment is the
challenge. Voluntary pledges made as a part of the WIAP
should reflect this progress.
Pledges may take many forms including: specific
financial or programmatic commitments, the development of
a suite of policy instruments that will advance the adoption
and use of renewable energy resources and technologies,
the launch of programs that will increase the deployment
of renewable energy or a combination of any of these options.
Pledges, which are being solicited from federal governments,
subnational governments, the private sector, and civil society
actors will be collected and included in the Washington
International Action Program as a central outcome of WIREC
2008.
Background Information
In 2004, Germany hosted the first International
Conference for Renewable Energies in Bonn. More than 3,600
participants focused on three central themes: the formation
of political framework conditions to allow market development
of renewable energies, increasing public and private financing
in order to secure reliable demand for renewable energies,
and human and institutional capacity building (including
the coordination of research and development). Participants
generated 197 concrete actions and commitments by governments
and other actors
In 2005, a second conference held in Beijing
capitalized on the success of the previous year. This conference
had a broad focus on policies, strategies, and financing
mechanisms, as well as individual forums on investment and
finance, industrialists and entrepreneurs, technology, and
north-south cooperation. At the close of the conference,
government representatives from 78 countries signed a declaration
affirming their commitment to renewable energy and discussing
the challenges the industry faces.
Since the close of the Beijing conference,
worldwide enthusiasm for renewable energy has increased
dramatically, and production has soared. According to a
recent study by the United Nations Environment Program,
investments in renewable energy reached a record $70.9 billion
in 2006, a 43 percent increase over 2005. A similar growth
trajectory is expected this year. The global community fully
recognizes the imperative to promote widespread adoption
of renewable energies such as biomass, biofuels, wind, solar,
geothermal, and hydropower.
WIREC 2008 will build upon the outcomes
of the conferences in Bonn and Beijing to foster increased
political support and public awareness for renewable energy,
new and innovative actions to promote widespread adoption
of renewable energy, and advanced tools for collecting and
disseminating best practices to end users. WIREC 2008 will
serve as a showcase and launching pad for concrete initiatives
undertaken by the public and private sectors to promote
widespread adoption of cost effective renewable energy technologies.
Building on the hundreds of practical initiatives in the
Bonn International Action Plan and UN’s database of
Partnerships for Sustainable Development, WIREC 2008 will
continue the dialogue about practical, on-the-ground action.
For additional information and registration
about WIREC 2008 please see: www.wirec2008.gov
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