Title: Development by synergising renewable energy with social services
Authors: Jean-Paul Gagnon
Addresses: School of Philosophy, The University of Queensland, Lvl 3, Forgan Smith Bldg, 4072, St Lucia, Australia
Abstract: This paper explains the idea of a synergism between cutting-edge renewable energy technologies and social services. This is designed to create 'free' services for the public. These 'free' services could occur if 'intensive' renewable energy generation technologies permitted the physical structures housing social services to sell megawatts of electricity. This would act as the income necessary to support the particular social service. The practice could bypass the public treasury. It could remove governments from the neoliberal versus nanny-state debates by creating a framework which would allow the marketplace to spur the growth of 'free' social services and the proliferation of renewable energy technologies. Private investors could gain returns on their capital from the income generated by the renewable energy technology. In turn, private investment would foster an increased provision of social services.
Keywords: social services; renewable energy; environmental technology; market governance; development; private investment.
DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2013.057039
International Journal of Innovation and Sustainable Development, 2013 Vol.7 No.4, pp.356 - 366
Accepted: 15 Apr 2013
Published online: 06 Oct 2013 *