Socio-Economic and Environmental Aspects of the Energy Transition—Development Towards a Secure Future

Dear Colleagues,

The need to protect the environment is obvious. One of the main challenges in the field of environmental protection is the energy transition. The process of transition from non-environmental solutions to green technologies in the energy generation and distribution process is taking place at various stages around the world. This process is affected by development policy, which is reflected in the formal and legal framework regulating this process at the level of economies, the availability of capital for this purpose, and finally public awareness of sustainable development goals, which influences the scope and pace of changes. This is landscape of the basic research challenges that fall within the thematic scope of this Special Issue.

The socio-economic and environmental aspects of the energy transition are extremely broad. One of the problematic threads in this area is the aspect of the resource and climate crisis, determining the need to search for alternatives that allow energy to be produced without environmental consequences for future generations. In this sphere, the key issue is that of over-exploitation leading to the depletion of natural resources and the environmentally harmful effects of their processing in the form of emissions or toxic discharges. Hence, there is a research rationale in terms of the objectives adopted in this area, the achievements developed, or the potential for improvement of the practices adopted, with particular reference to green innovations and their impact on the environmental, social and economic dimensions.

Another important theme is the energy transition, considered in the light of social and economic security. The availability of adequate energy resources at an affordable price is a key reference for economic challenges at the level of several economies. Noteworthy in this area are the legal regimes driving or constraining equilibrium in this area. Also of interest in this area are support programmes and initiatives aimed at enhancing transition processes. The economic aspects (financing of green innovations) of, and the analysis of the economic effects of, these undertakings (profitability of investments, economic efficiency of solutions) at the level of institutional and individual consumers are key. Financial instruments are also important as they canoffset the effects of high energy prices aimed at tackling energy poverty.

The proposed issues are part of the set of key challenges of the energy transition, orienting the world's development towards a safe, sustainable future. The articulated issues do not exhaust the subject matter. Therefore, original research articles, reviews, or analyses presenting the latest findings related to strengthening the knowledge of the energy transition—its conditions, achievements and effects, as well as development potential, including negotiations—will be relevant for this Special Issue.

The proposed thematic areas for this Special Issue include the following:

1. The energy transition in the light of the climate crisis;
2. The energy transition in the light of sustainable development;
3. Social aspects of the energy transition;
4. The ecnomic justification of green transition processes;
5. Green innovation in the energy sector;
6. Energy policy of economies;
7. The challenges of the energy transition;
8. Environmental impact of the energy transformation processes;
9. Public awareness of sustainable development, with particular reference to green energy and its environmental impact;
10. Energy transition and energy poverty;
11. Energy transition and network capacity—challenges, concepts, solutions;
12. Energy management (distribution, consumption)—tools, economic effects;
13. The problem of energy efficiency.

Prof. Dr. Ewa Chomać-Pierzecka
Guest Editor

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• energy transition
• sustainable economics
• sustainable society
• green energy
• green innovation