A New Type of Revolution in Latin America

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               Historically speaking the Sun has played a key role in shaping the Mesoamerican and South American aspects of pre-colonial culture and religion. From our earliest understanding of the regions ancient religions we have discovered a direct link between their beliefs and that of astronomy. The sun, being a key part of their understanding of their physical and spiritual world. 

Following the colonization of the region, these ancient customs were all but lost. This genocide of both their people and their beliefs led to a great loss in our understanding of their society. One of the major beliefs that has been uncovered is that of the Mayan Fifth Sun. 

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          The Mayan fifth sun was considered by many to mark the Mayan's belief in Armageddon. They however, could not be more incorrect. The Mayan Fifth Sun is not a period of death and destruction, but a re-birth of spirit and development. A change in composition and beliefs that marks the beginning of a new age. This re-birth can be considered a drastic change in the way Latin America has historically been viewed. December 21st, 2012, marked a new age for Latin America. That age is fueled by renewable energy.

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          The majority of Latin America lies in the Sun Belt Region of highest solar radiation, solar energy in this region is nothing short of overabundant. This factor, added to the regions growth under the yoke of non-renewable energy, shows the possibility for an incredible re-birth of providence and quality of life in these fossil fuel consuming societies.

         In terms of Latin America, solar energy has the ability to stabilize and reconstruct the region into the beacon of pride it was before the European colonization. Its a way to feasibly end the reliance on the world energy market and begin to produce energy in Latin America, and not be reliant on foreign sources to dictate the price of energy. 

          The International Renewable Energy Agency, or IRENA, has recently found that, as of January 2015, renewable energy was shown to be more cost effective than Fossil Fuels. The ramifications of this finding are enormous, especially for the companies invested heavily in fossil fuels. This shift has been on the horizon for awhile, and oil companies have already reacted. 

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These oil companies are afraid of a future that isn't beholden to them for energy needs, and they should be. Countries around the world are rethinking their energy sources, and Latin America is set to lead the way. 
           According to the Inter-American Development Bank, in Latin America, 34 million people lack access to modern electricity services. Even more destructive to progress is that fossil fuel imports take up a sizable chunk of many Latin American countries budgets. This money could go back into the economy and produce jobs. How? Not by pouring money into foreign markets plagued with constant price increases and supply problems but instead investing in the new field of Solar energy. 

          Over the past hundred years, the cost of energy limited the ability of Latin American countries to reach their full potential. The new breakthroughs in renewable sources can eliminate that restriction and create potentially free, limitless energy. If you're thinking to yourself that relying on solar energy is economically unfeasible, just consider the following; the price of solar cells has fallen fifteen-fold since 1980 and shows no sign of slowing down. 

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          Compounding that, the cost of solar PV has halved between 2010 and 2014 Its important to understand that as the price of solar falls, the price of non-renewable sources continue to grow. What this allows is a re-evaluation of what Latin American Countries can do for their population, to allow for a greener, prosperous future. 

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          As IRENA states in their summery of findings, "any remaining perceptions that renewable power generation technologies are expensive or uncompetitive are at best outdated, and at worst a dangerous fallacy." Don't let an outdated perception of energy fuel a greater reliance on nonrenewable, environmentally dangerous, and costly sources. Think Green, in terms of energy and saved money.

Power Transition Theory and Solar Energy

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How the Energy Battle is Going to Play Out:

In International Relations and Affairs there is one predominant theory that both frightens and fascinates those who come across it. The Power Transition Theory in International Affairs attempts to categorically trace the historical outcomes of different global and regional shifts of power between two or more states. The theory, at its basis, finds that in the majority of cases, as one power declines and another power rises, conflict is inevitable. How this conflict presents itself is the subject of much debate. In the Cold War between Soviet Union and the United States, that conflict was predominantly economic and political, with some aspects of ground warfare.

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This theory is currently being used to analyze how the United States is dealing with the rise of China.

In this post-globalization world, the majority of actions that affect global affairs have to do with non-state actors. Non-state actors are both political actors; unaffiliated militant groups (Terrorists and militias) and economic actors; multinational corporations and transactions between states and corporations, to name a few.

The Energy Crisis:

In the next few years the world will see a shift in the public image of renewable and non-renewable energies alike. This shift in both public opinion and access to new sources of energy will be the result of an intense battle that even now is raging. This battle, similar to that of the cold war, or the looming economic shift that may be a result of a second world superpower on the rise, can be explained through the use of the Power Transition Theory.

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The two major actors in this battle will not, as historically seen, be states, but rather the alternate forms of energy sources available to the general public. The two major sources that will be either condemned or applauded, depending on your political background will be coal and solar energy. This analysis is based around the current availability of coal and its ability to generate cleaner energy through new sources of refinement. The solar choice is difficult because the entire field of renewable energy technology is expanding exponentially. However, given the recent breakthrough in energy storage technology by both Toyota and Tesla, its poised to overtake other sources of renewable energy as highlighted in a recent post.

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The United States, as of 2013, receives roughly 90.5% of its energy from non-renewable sources. However, the growth in output from solar energy doubled in the United States from 2013 to 2014. Granted, diminishing returns shows that figure to be exponentially more difficult to achieve as the sector increases in size, just as 200% of 1 is 2 and 200% of 2 is 4. That growth is inherently unsustainable long term, as reflected in the graph below.

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However, that growth shows no signs of slowing down in terms of short term. What this means is that while you're not going to see an overnight change in your neighborhood's roofs surface area solar panel usage, over the next ten years you are going to see a lot more about solar energy. The reason being is that non-renewable sources are scared, and for good reason. As expressed in a past post of mine, energy consumption at its basis is a zero-sum gain.

Realistically speaking, everything that the renewable energy sector gains is taken away from the non-renewable profits. This isn't a huge problem now, the price of oil is staggeringly low, but the law of diminishing returns can also be used to assess the access to oil. To meet world energy demands, new, expensive ways to access oil are becoming more common. As can be seen though to access these reserves is size-ably more expensive as the historical alternatives. Oil, gas, and coal being non-renewable are eventually not going to be feasible in terms of energy demand. This growing demand on a limited resource will just serve to expiate the process of consumption, and as the supply of these resources will fall, the demand will rise. In this realistic and unavoidable future, the answer lies in renewable energy.

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On top of all of this the current price of oil is unsustainable. Its a mixture of political retribution of the country of Iran from Saudi Arabia and the United States for Iran's Nuclear Energy research, and the rise of the American fracking industry. This attempt at strangling United States oil and Iran's Nuclear energy is costing Saudi Arabia an incredible amount of money and is at its heart a very short term operation.

So What Does This Mean for the Average American Consumer?

The price of gas is going to go up. There's no doubt in that. Unfortunately, that's simply the nature of a non-renewable source of energy, in contrast however, the price of solar energy and other renewable energy sources is plummeting year by year.

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Here's the reflective price for that energy:

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Translation: If you buy solar panels today you will have the most return for your investment in solar history. The same cannot be said for non-renewable sources. Unfortunately, unlike solar energy, the future for fossil fuels doesn't look to bright.

A showdown is going to happen between the powerful coal, oil, and gas corporations and that of renewable energy. At the end of the day, with this type of situation, the future is clear. Renewable energy is happening, for the benefit of mankind as a whole, and their respective wallets. 

For more information on how/why you should switch to solar energy, go here.

Has Fossil Fuel Finally Met Its Match?

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  The Beginning of a Massive Shift:

When the world changes, I'm interested. I come from a large family in a small Massachusetts town. Growing up I always loved finding better ways to do things. Whether that came in the form of devising new ways to shovel out our driveway or re-organizing how my college organization manages mail to save a few bucks. I love the ability to act and find positive results. Like any true New Englander, I know when the season is about to change and when to trade in my snow boots for summer. It's clear to me that now is the time to act, and I plan on convincing you that you should too.

There was recently a leap in technology. Unfortunately, the story did not get the amount of press that it was due. As of this month, both Toyota and Tesla are releasing a new form of energy storage that has the capacity to decimate energy costs.

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The most crucial aspect of the new release is Toyota's new battery, it has the ability to change the entire way pay for energy. Toyota recently released their new Miuri, which means "future" in Japanese. This car is revolutionary in many ways. One of the major ways that's not being reported on heavily is its technological application in terms of generating power for houses. The battery that supplies this car with energy can be reconfigured easily to generate energy for a house. When tested this provided enough power for an average Japanese house to last a whole week. That amount of energy storage, up until recently, was impractical and too expensive to justify. This release is nothing short of groundbreaking.

Tesla, another leading renewable energy car company answered this challenge by Toyota by releasing its new battery that has the ability to end your reliance on fossil fuels for good. This battery, which allows for you to effectively store and use enough power to care for yourself is unbelievable its its perspective applications. The battery is designed and proven, all that's left is the mass production.

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 Musk is no stranger to innovation but this new development is earth shattering.

So What Can We Get Out of This?

The short answer, potentially free energy for life.

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The issue of energy storage has plagued Solar Energy systems from their creation. The inherent nature of the technology provides the most amount of power during the time of day when the average consumer uses the least. So the maximum benefits of this technology hasn't been reached, until now.

Roughly 90.5% of all energy consumed in the United States in 2013 came from non-renewable, relatively expensive sources. As highlighted in a previous article of mine, solar energy could easily replace the need for fossil fuels, and do so relatively cheaply.

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I mean saving money is saving money but there's no point leaving any of it on the table. Dollar and cents wise, this makes the switch to solar the investment of a lifetime. Currently its possible to switch to solar for little or no money out of pocket if you invest in a solar energy system from SolarCity.
The future for lack of a better phrase has never been brighter for these energy companies who already have unbelievable growth.

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What makes Musk's unveiling so powerful is that it solves the single largest hurdle in stopping Solar Energy from booming and taking over the energy market. The new ability to store energy obtained throughout the day will allow for the continued use overnight and a 100% efficiency that has escaped these companies so far.

Why you should switch:

In the meanwhile if you don't switch to Solar soon, the exodus of educated consumers to solar energy will mean an increase in the average cost per watt if you stick to the old, non-renewable sources. A simple supply and demand concept proves that as these outdated energy companies lose customers they will have to increase rates on their goods in order to continue being profitable. This means more cost per consumer and less feasibility in terms of return for your dollar.

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With a zero-sum gain type of situation as represented in the United States energy market, every watt supplied by solar energy is a watt taken away from those of destructive and non-renewable sources like coal and oil. The battle is likely to become a messy one, its important to see the forest for the trees and invest in solar before wasting more money sustaining the current energy model.