Article

Giving a Green Light to Sustainable Energy

An electric vehicle charging in front of a row of solar panels and wind turbines, symbolizing the future of clean energy and sustainable transportation

Experts confirm that current and future needs for electricity may soon exceed our global supply. New AI-driven data centers, electric vehicle charging stations, energy-intensive manufacturing operations, and a growing volume of internet connections are placing an increasing strain on outdated electric grids. This looming reality has since challenged utilities, grid operators, technologists, and regulators to reconcile existing electric capacity with rising demand.

It subsequently comes as no surprise that interest in renewable energy sources and related green technologies continues to grow. These solutions reduce carbon footprints, enhance global sustainability, and combat the effects of climate change.

Energy industry professionals have been addressing the disparity between electric supply and demand in various ways. Solutions include everything from increasing overall reliance on renewable energy sources to employing IoT-enabled automation devices to optimize electric distribution, reduce waste, and enhance overall electric efficiency, reliability, and performance.

A Green Energy Revolution

As utilities continue to integrate renewable energy sources into their mix, numerous engineering advancements are helping them meet energy supply targets and align with the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals for 2030.

In the solar power arena, scientists are working with a highly responsive family of crystalline compounds called perovskites to deliver more power from existing solar panel devices. Based on their ability to analyze massive amounts of real-world data, quantum computing and AI are also being harnessed to help achieve more efficient solar cell design. Thanks to these technological achievements, solar energy has become more affordable, with costs dropping by some 90% in the last decade. Based on this and other factors, the World Economic Forum predicts that solar power is on track to be the world’s dominant power source by 2050.

The Future of Sustainable Energy

Though wind turbines are currently a less prevalent source of renewable energy worldwide than solar power, advancements in these devices are similarly helping to make them more powerful, efficient, and accessible. An engineering team at England’s University of Birmingham recently used AI to test more than 2,000 different blade designs and “explore design possibilities beyond the scope of traditional human experimentation.” Their research led to the development of the ‘Birmingham Blade,’ an optimally shaped and weighted blade that’s up to seven times more efficient than existing designs and scheduled to be commercially available later this year. The computational powers of AI also accelerated the blade design process, reducing development time from years to weeks.

As a result of these and other breakthroughs in the green energy industry, renewable energy sources are growing globally. In 2024, all renewable energy sources combined – including wind, solar, hydropower, biomass, and geothermal – provided over 32% of the world’s electricity, nearly double the level that renewable sources represented 25 years earlier. In the U.S., the use of renewables accounted for over 24% of total electricity production in 2024, up 4% from 2023.

Smart Grid innovations

On top of the growing use of renewable energy sources, utilities are increasingly relying on intelligent “edge devices” to optimize electricity usage. This category includes the use of IoT-driven sensors and smart two-way meters to provide continuous monitoring and enable real-time insights into grid conditions. By tracking each user’s energy consumption patterns, these smart devices promote informed decision-making that allows utilities and users to optimize their energy usage and better integrate solar, wind, and other renewable sources into their energy portfolio. The additional ability to store this energy through battery energy storage systems (BESS) further helps to address supply shortfalls and stabilize/optimize the grid.

Transportation and Sustainability

Other technological developments are also making great strides towards reducing our global reliance on fossil fuels and combatting climate change. In the transportation sector, ongoing advancements in electric vehicle design, regenerative braking, and electric drive train technology continue to deliver instant power, greater efficiency, and zero tailpipe emissions relative to conventional internal combustion engines.

The world is responding in kind, with global sales of electric vehicles hitting a record 17 million in 2024 (a 25% growth over 2023 levels). This trend will continue to reduce the world’s carbon footprint. According to the European Environment Agency (EEA), electric vehicles emit 30% less greenhouse gases than traditional gasoline-fueled cars and their lifecycle emissions could decrease by at least 73% by 2050. In the U.S. alone, experts believe that the widespread use of EVs will lower the country’s CO2 pollution by two-thirds.

IEEE Climate Change eLearning Courses

As a globally recognized professional organization that plays a key role in shaping the fields of electrical engineering, electronics, and computer science, IEEE is committed to using its expertise and resources to foster technology for a sustainable climate.

To address growing concerns about climate change, IEEE offers a broad range of eLearning resources. These courses focus specifically on climate change and its impact across various industries, including:

Explore these courses on the IEEE Learning Network, or request institutional access today.

Thursday, 29th May 2025