Australia, Indonesia, Japan and Nigeria have joined a collaborativeinitiative steered by the UK Government and the International Energy Agency (IEA) aimed at drastically improving the energy efficiency of appliances such as lighting, refrigerators and air conditioners.

“IEA analysisclearly shows the importance of energy efficiency for reaching net zero emissions globally,” Fatih Birol, the IEA Executive Director said. “Policies to improve the efficiency of products have already helped halve the energy consumption of major appliances in many markets, allowing consumers to benefit from significant savings while also loweringgreenhouse gas emissions.

 What Is a Smart Grid, and How Might One Protect Our Energy Future? Our electric grid is old and fraying, but new technology could insulate us from the possibility of widespread blackouts and cyberattacks. In February 2021, an electric grid failure in Texas caused more than 4.5 million homes and businesses to lose power. Months later, wide-scale droughts and wildfires threatened the western US with rolling blackouts. With new energy sources such as wind and solar power, maintaining a steady balance gets even more complicated. This is because power from these sources is inconsistent.

“Smart grids” sense small imbalances faster, making adjustments so problems don’t get larger. They use sensors to constantly measure the status of different parts of the grid, and a series of devices that control the current flowing through different points. The sensors and controllersare run by computers that make automatic adjustments to maximize efficiency.