Uruguay is a renewable energy utopia. How did it get there?
Part 3 of the TED Radio Hour episode Paradise Lost and Found
In five years, Uruguay transformed its grid. Now 98% of its energy comes from renewables. Former national director of energy, Ramón Méndez Galain, recounts his country's path and how to replicate it.
About Ramón Méndez Galain
As Uruguay's National Director of Energy, Ramón Méndez Galain led an unprecedented energy transformation, culminating in the country's current mix of 98 percent renewables, nearly 40 percent of which comes from wind alone. He then became Uruguay's Secretary of Climate Change and their chief negotiator for the Paris Climate Agreement in 2015.
Currently, as Executive Director of Ivy, Galain works to promote a sustainable transition throughout Latin America and the Caribbean, helping governments, the private sector, academia and citizens lead the region towards a net-zero economy.
He began his career as a university professor. He holds his bachelors and PhD in physics from the University of Grenoble, France and the University of La Plata, Argentina.
Web Resources
Related TED Bio: Ramón Méndez Galain Related TED Talk: What the fossil fuel industry doesn't want you to know Related TED Talk: The molecular love story that could help power the worldRelated NPR Links
How did Uruguay cut carbon emissions? The answer is blowing in the wind U.S. transition to clean energy is happening faster than you think, reporter says Renewable energy is here. But how do we store it for the future?This segment of the TED Radio Hour was produced by Andrea Gutierrez and edited by Sanaz Meshkinpour. You can follow us on Facebook @TEDRadioHour and email us at TEDRadioHour@npr.org.
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