Clean Energy:  The One Trillion Dollar Green Market by 2030 That's the recent estimation put forward by financial powerhouse Morgan Stanley.  The figure is based on future sales of clean energy from sources like solar, geothermal, wind, and biofuels. In a recently issued memo the bank cited, as reported by Reuters, population growth, high fossil energy prices, increasingly competitive clean energy, and growing concern about energy security and climate change as drivers of the market.  According to Morgan Stanley, sales of clean energy could reach $505 billion by 2020 and double in the ten years after that to over $1 trillion dollars. Morgan Stanley is the most bullish on solar power, whose market penetration in the electricity market could rise from infinitesimal levels in 2005 to 11.2% in 2030.  Wind power will also be on the move, it said, climbing from a 0.9% to a 9.6% market share by 2030. Megatrend as Food Consumers Demand Clean Energy: Island Bounty understands this megatrend.  Clean energy from wind and solar will power the food industry of the future. Consumers will demand the cleanest foods, produced by the cleanest energy sources. The Future of Energy  Environmental Sustainability Until recently, most decisions about energy use were based solely on cost and availability. Now, with carbon emissions from fossil fuels contributing to global climate change, environmental concerns are becoming increasingly important. Of all energy futures, renewable energy provides the most promising path.  It's a "sign of the times" and public outcry now demands that renewable energy be addressed once and for all!  With the help of modest government funding of research, and many dedicated entrepreneurs, solar, biomass, wind, and geothermal energy sources have become less expensive and more reliable in the last 20 years.  All have developed important niche markets in the 1980s and 1990s, and as the 21st century begins, clean and sustainable renewable energy is more important than ever. Harnessing Solar Energy       Harnessing solar energy involves both the direct use of the radiated heat as well as its conversion to electricity in the most efficient way possible. There are three categories that define every type of solar energy technology. First, passive solar collection begins with the design of the building and includes optimal location, windows facing south, walls that absorb heat and light, and plenty of insulation.  The heat and light that is collected is used in its original form of heat or light such as in a greenhouse. Active solar collection implies converting solar energy to a more usable form of heat or electricity. A second distinction is the type of energy an active solar system creates. Thermal applications include heat collection and heat-driven mechanisms, such as converting water to steam to power a steam engine that generates electricity.  Electric processes use photovoltaic cells that create a moving electric charge that produces a direct electric current. PV panels have been used successfully on satellites and have a life expectancy of thirty years, making them an economically viable option for commercial use. Finally, a third distinction in solar energy concerns the degree of concentration used in harnessing the suns energy. Concentrating systems engage mirrors and lenses to direct the sunlight to the area of collection. In some systems, parabolic trough-shaped structures of photovoltaic cells can even be powered to follow the motion of the sun allow for increased electricity generation. Non-concentrating systems are often simple flat panel collectors that are most commonly found as rooftop PV or as solar pool heaters. Off-Grid Solar Energy 90% of the world’s population does not live beside the main grid lines created by major utilities. Nevertheless, these people have significant energy requirements that encourage creative solutions. Finding and accessing water from the depths of the earth, beyond pollution and disease usually takes a form of power that is not always available to villages in remote areas. Here, a mother has accessed clean water for her child, as a result of solar power created by the use of panels. Worldwide, solar currently provides less than one percent of electricity demand but is projected to supply 26% of the worlds consumption by 2040. This industrial transition will occur as solar generated electricity becomes cost effective throughout the world. Environmentally Friendly Non-polluting:   Solar electricity generation produces no emissions while the current alternative, fossil fuel combustion, releases more than a pound of carbon dioxide emissions for every kilowatt hour.  Non-consumptive:   The suns radiation is a limitless resource that can be collected without the environmentally destructive processes of mining or pipelines.  These ingenious water pump and filter systems use solar-powered technology to bring clean, safe drinking water to some of the most remote places on the planet, without costing the earth. Renewable Energy is Economically Beneficial Cost effective: Solar generated electricity is already cheaper than conventional electricity in many major US cities. By 2027, PV will be the most cost-effective solution (even without any government subsidies or advantages from its environmental cleanliness) in nearly all areas of the United States. Immediate and permanent savings:   Properly financed systems will provide consumers with cheaper electricity from the day of installation. Technological advancements:   Improvements in solar technologies offer reduced costs and greater efficiency. Solar Energy Easily Accessible to All Financial Security:    The price of solar electricity does not fluctuate with politics or supply speculation.   There will never be a shortage that will cause solar electricity to become unaffordable.  Already distributed:  There are no expensive transportation costs for solar electricity because the sun shines everywhere. Leapfrogging:   Solar electricity will allow sun-rich developing nations to leapfrog as they are doing with wireless telecommunications to new energy architecture without having to install expensive land-based grids.  More Practical Outcomes from SAFE Solar Energy: The solar panels contribute to cutting pollution by reducing the number of batteries being used and then thrown away. Using solar lanterns instead of kerosene lanterns, and other fuels in general, cuts down on air pollution worldwide. This can also save very poor people money in the long run as the need to buy batteries is reduced - money that can be spent elsewhere, such as on medicines and schooling. Using the sun's energy is no longer wishful thinking from idealists of environmental sustainability; it is the solution to the world's approaching energy crisis and an economic inevitability. We are rapidly moving toward a dramatic and dominant role for solar energy - a trend that should be encouraged by both policy makers and capital markets.