We need to decarbonise our electricity supply, and quickly – Alan Finkel shows how green energy can be a reality, and bring economic benefits

By John Quiggin, Professor, School of Economics, The University of Queensland

We use energy in everything we do, but few of us understand it properly. Much of the time this doesn’t matter. We can flick a light switch or turn the ignition key in a car, knowing the technology will work whether we understand it or not. Even something as simple as the distinction between alternating current and direct current is a mystery to most people without a scientific education.

But thanks to climate change, we can no longer be comfortably ignorant. A better understanding of energy systems is urgently needed if we are to transform those systems successfully.

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