Energy Transition and Sustainability: Low-Carbon Economy

Dear Colleagues,

Measures to address climate change have shifted course towards achieving an energy transition and a decarbonized economy by the middle of this century. The roadmap toward a decarbonized society, that is carbon neutrality, has begun not only in Europe and America but also in Asian countries such as Japan, China, and Korea. This movement will inevitably stretch to the entire world.

In order to achieve this ambitious target, it is crucial that well-designed decarbonization policies are put in place and that there is coordinated support for an energy transition and transformative decarbonization technologies in various sectors. This suggests that the path to a decarbonized economy by the middle of this century will be challenging, especially considering that approximately 80–85% of the global average primary energy supply is derived from fossil fuels.

Reducing the consumption of fossil fuels to virtually zero over, approximately, the next 30–40 years will require a huge economic investment towards a rapid energy transition. However, recent years have seen the development of and cost reduction in a variety of decarbonization technologies, including renewable energy, EV, and the production of hydrogen , demonstrating how we are already on the road towards a decarbonized economy.

To accelerate the green energy transition and promote efficient energy resources in the world, a range of policy options and joint efforts among the countries will be required, including carbon pricing, energy tax reform, the expansion of transition finance, and support for the development of low-carbon and resource-efficient social infrastructure.

We invite papers to contribute ideas on how to effectively design decarbonization policies and support energy transition and decarbonization technologies towards a sustainable future under three sub-topics: 1) the theory and modeling of the energy transition toward a low carbon (decarbonized) economy; 2) the energy transition and decarbonized technological innovations; and 3) decarbonization policy designs and their impact on the economy.

This Special Issue wishes to promote the discussion and collection of ideas regarding a successful energy transition for the sustainable future of the world.

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