Civil Engineering January-February 2022 | Vol 30 No 1

30 January/February 2022 Civil Engineering T he partners, united in a shared vision for the sustainability of the renewables industry and the need to take concrete, collaborative action, have come together to create the Global Alliance for Sustainable Energy. The initiative is unique in its scope and ambition, representing the founding members’ joint response to the urgent need to decarbonise the global energy system while ensuring its sustainability from an environmental, social and governance perspective. The Global Alliance for Sustainable Energy brings together utility companies from diverse geographies, major manu- facturers in the wind power and solar PV supply chains as well as sector associa- tions and innovation partners. The 17 founding members are: 3M, Adani Green Energy Ltd., EDP, Eletrobras, Enel Green Power, Global Solar Council, Global Wind Energy Council, Goldwind, Iberdrola, JA Solar, Nordex Group, NTPC Limited, Politecnico di Milano, Politecnico di Torino, ReNew Power, Risen Energy and Trina Solar. “We have to act now – and act to- gether – in making a serious commitment towards carbon-free, sustainable energy,” said Salvatore Bernabei, representative of the founding members of the Global Alliance for Sustainable Energy, and CEO of Enel Green Power. “We will pursue our mission to make a collective impact in embedding sustainability across the entire value chain by leveraging on core, shared values: responsibility, respect for human rights, protection of the environment and bio- diversity, but also open collaboration and transparency.” REDEFINING SUSTAINABLE ENERGY The Global Alliance for Sustainable Energy aims to redefine the meaning of sustainable energy and embrace all those working in and impacted by renewables, joining efforts with civil so- ciety, end-users, policymakers, academic institutions, materials suppliers, original equipment manufacturers and likeminded utilities to interface with governments and investors. The initiative is fully aligned with the 2030 agenda set out in the UN Sustainable Development Goals. While wind and solar have distinct characteristics as renewable technologies, they are highly complementary and share both similar growth trajectories and similar challenges to their sustainable deployment. Closer alignment between wind and solar is therefore critical for accelerating the energy transition. “The wind industry has a crucial role to play in cleaning up the dirty parts of the global economy such as steel, cement and heavy transport but also to decarbonise our own supply chain at the same time,” said Ben Backwell, CEO of the Global Wind Energy Council. “Work on the wind industry’s own sustainability is already under way as we move from pilot projects to a full-scale industry approach, addressing challenges Global alliance to drive renewable energy Late last year a group of global leaders from across the renewable energy value chain and the sector’s innovation ecosystem launched a new organisation to ensure renewables are wholly sustainable for people and the planet and lead a just transition away from fossil fuels.