The Society of Renewable Energy (SRE), Universitas Hasanuddin, successfully hosted Energy Talks #3: International, an advanced international online talkshow titled:
“Renewable Leading the Charge: Bridging the Gap Between COP30 Promises and Reality”
The event attracted more than 150 participants from diverse academic, professional, and geographical backgrounds, reflecting strong international interest in renewable energy, climate governance, and planetary sustainability. Participants included students, researchers, policymakers, engineers, and sustainability practitioners from multiple disciplines.
The session featured Erfan Firouzi, award-winning biodiversity advocate and COP30 Virtual Advocate, and was moderated by Dianti Utami Dewi. Conducted online via Zoom, the event was free and open to the public, with participants receiving advanced-level insights as well as a free e-certificate.
From Climate Promises to Planetary Reality
Opening the session, Erfan Firouzi thanked SRE Universitas Hasanuddin for convening an international and interdisciplinary audience of over 150 participants. Drawing from his experience across climate negotiations, biodiversity science, and youth engagement, he highlighted a growing global contradiction:
Inside COP negotiation halls, ambition is rising; net zero targets, renewable pledges, and accelerated transitions. Outside those halls, planetary systems continue to destabilize.
Despite stronger climate language, he noted:
- Accelerating global biodiversity loss
- Increasing land-system fragmentation
- Rising freshwater stress
- Intensifying climate impacts
This, he emphasized, reveals a framing gap between climate ambition and Earth-system reality.
Planetary Boundaries: Why Energy Systems Must Think Bigger
A core theme of the talk was the Planetary Boundaries framework, which explains the biophysical limits that keep Earth stable and habitable. Erfan stressed that energy systems are embedded within ecological systems not separate from them.
Four boundaries were highlighted as especially relevant to renewable energy deployment:
- Climate change
- Biosphere integrity
- Land-system change
- Freshwater use
The central message was clear:
Renewable energy is indispensable for climate mitigation, but its long-term success depends on operating within planetary limits.
COP Commitments: From Negotiation to Delivery
The discussion traced the evolution of renewable energy across COP milestones—from the Paris Agreement to COP28’s Global Renewables Pledge—and positioned COP30 in Brazil as the delivery and implementation phase.
COP30, Erfan explained, inherits the responsibility to ensure that renewable energy expansion is:
- Rapid enough to meet climate targets
- Equitable across regions
- Integrated with biodiversity and ecosystem protection
Rapid Growth, Persistent Gaps
Participants were presented with key global trends:
- Over 500 GW of renewables added annually
- Solar and wind accounting for more than 80% of new capacity
- Renewables now the cheapest source of new electricity in most regions
Yet, to meet 2030 targets, annual additions must nearly double. The main constraints are no longer technical, but structural—spanning grid readiness, finance, fossil-fuel subsidies, and political time horizons.
Addressing the Biodiversity Blind Spot
A critical highlight of the session was the biodiversity blind spot in renewable energy planning. While renewables reduce emissions, poorly designed projects can unintentionally:
- Fragment habitats
- Disrupt species migration
- Intensify land and water competition
Erfan warned that decarbonization without ecological intelligence risks solving emissions while destabilizing planetary systems.
Designing Renewables for a Living Planet
To bridge this gap, the talk introduced a framework for nature-positive renewable energy, based on three principles:
Anticipate
- Ecological baselines and sensitivity mapping
Integrate
- Agrovoltaics, multi-use landscapes, wildlife-aware turbines
Regenerate
- Restoration funding, long-term monitoring, community stewardship
High-quality renewable projects, he emphasized, should generate electricity while restoring ecosystem function.
A Decade of Delivery
With active engagement and questions from over 150 participants, Energy Talks #3 International reinforced that the 2020s are the decisive decade for climate action.
Renewables can indeed lead the charge but only if they help humanity return to balance with the living planet that sustains us.