Life on earth including our country is steered by energy. Earth’s primary source of energy is sun. Autotrophs capture solar radiation and store energy through the process of photosynthesis so that the heterotrophs could use up the energy which was stored in the course of history. Humans have got the ability to release a vast amount of energy in a very short amount of time by being able to control fire. Since then, we have been over exploiting the fossil fuel.
The technological advancements were made possible at the expense of our planet. We use an excessive amount of energy to change our environment according to our needs. That’s how our civilizations have evolved. Fossil fuel is drying up, that’s no secret. Now we are looking into other modes of energy. If we fail to find a suitable mode of energy that’ll be the doom of the human civilizations. At present Solar energy, geothermal energy, wind energy, biomass, hydropower and tidal energy are some of the methods that are being used but none of them hasn’t yet taken the place of the drying up fossil fuel. Out of many; the high cost for maintenance and infrastructure is one reason for it.
Meanwhile the global system is transitioning away from a nearly complete dependence on fossil fuels towards a greater reliance on clean and renewable energy sources. Safeguarding Energy security through availability, reliability and affordability has become a primary concern to each state and is important geopolitically. In the world arena energy diplomacy can be seen to use for the provision of energy resources and positioning of the country concerning energy security and international partners and can be used as a tool of diplomacy to influence governments and policymakers.
The post-Cold War global structure has collapsed amid the confrontation between the United States and China, and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The invasion of Ukraine by resource-rich Russia is forcing a restructuring of the world energy order. Amidst all the calamity, the fuel prices keep rising. This has a huge toll on developing countries like Sri Lanka. We spend a tremendous amount to import fuel. But are we on the correct track to conserve the energy to minimize the expenditure? or do we take proper use of the resources given by nature? We are a beautiful island surrounded by ocean. And we have a soothing tropical climate, but as a nation we have yet failed to take the maximum use of Solar, tidal and wind power. Sri Lanka must empower the energy sector to use its naturally given resources to utilize the energy to be independent in the world power struggle. And as citizens we have a huge role to play. All of us being mindful to switch off the lights and electrical appliances and switching to energy efficient appliances will have a big impact on the grid. Bear in mind Earth is running out of fuel, so we must conserve what we got.
Written By – Yoshini Kumarasinghe
References:
- https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2211467X19300793
- https://asianews.network/global-competition-for-energy-puts-small-countries-in-a-bind/
- https://www.diplomacy.edu/topics/energy-diplomacy/
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