Climate-Tech RD&D
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Innovation is central to addressing global climate change while increasing economic growth, boosting international competitiveness, and eliminating energy poverty. ITIF’s Center for Clean Energy Innovation seeks to accelerate the transition of the domestic and global energy systems to low-carbon resources. In the area of climate-tech RD&D, our research focuses on public and private investments to invent and improve technologies with the potential to significantly reduce carbon emissions.
Featured
How Federal Funding for Basic Research Spurs Clean Energy Discoveries the World Needs: Eight Case Studies
We need new breakthroughs in clean energy technology to address climate change. Recent discoveries in areas such as nuclear fusion and biofuels illustrate how government investment in early-stage research is a critical part of the process.
Beyond Force: A Realist Pathway Through the Green Transition
Trying to force adoption of clean energy with subsidies, regulations, and exhortations will fail. The only realistic way to spur the green transition is to develop clean technologies that can reach effective price and performance parity with dirty ones. Then markets will adopt them at scale.
More Publications and Events
November 5, 2024|Op-Eds & Contributed Articles
Solar and Wind Won’t Replace Natural Gas for Decades: They Will Depend on It.
Solar and wind are rapidly replacing coal, and many expect it will simply replace natural gas as well. But that’s a mistake: In fact, solar and wind for decades to come will depend on gas to fill variability gaps when the sun doesn’t shine or the wind doesn’t blow.
October 15, 2024|Blogs
Fact of the Week: In Small Island Developing States, Repeated Instances of Hurricanes Lead to an Increase in Green Innovations
Researchers find that in the long term, hurricanes positively impact green innovations in small island developing nations.
September 30, 2024|Reports & Briefings
Why Wind and Solar Need Natural Gas: A Realistic Approach to Variability
Wind and solar power will replace consistently dispatchable electricity from fossil fuels with variable and more unpredictable clean energy. Seasonal shifts and annual variations cannot be handled with batteries or other proposed storage solutions like hydrogen. Natural gas will have to bridge the gap for many decades.
June 10, 2024|Reports & Briefings
A Techno-Economic Agenda for the Next Administration
The next administration needs to place innovation, productivity, and competitiveness at the core of its economic policy. To that end, this report offers a comprehensive techno-economic agenda with 82 actionable policy recommendations.
May 28, 2024|Reports & Briefings
US State and Regional Energy Innovation Index
Vibrant regional energy innovation ecosystems are important for any national net-zero strategy. But to understand the potential contributions they can make to the price and performance of clean energy technologies, we must first benchmark the resources they bring to bear.
May 13, 2024|Podcasts
Podcast: Embracing Innovation Is the Ultimate Key to Tackling Climate Change, With Robin Gaster
Climate change is a global problem, with two polarized viewpoints making it difficult to find a solution.
May 10, 2024|Op-Eds & Contributed Articles
New DOE Foundation Should Think Big
Establishing the Foundation for Energy Security and Innovation (FESI) was a vital initial step, but its value will depend on what happens next.
April 24, 2024|Events
Harnessing AI for Carbon Neutrality
Watch now for a panel discussion to explore the current landscape of AI applications in transitioning to a greener economy, identify key areas ripe for further exploration, and discuss actionable policy measures to foster innovation and adoption.
March 21, 2024|Events
The Crucial Role of Early-Stage University Research in Clean Energy Innovation
Please join ITIF for an expert panel discussion about a new report examining the role of federal funding for clean energy research conducted by colleges and universities.
March 6, 2024|Op-Eds & Contributed Articles
Let’s Be Realistic About Green Hydrogen
Like any new technology, green hydrogen must meet three related challenges: production, distribution and adoption. But it faces far higher-than-advertised hurdles at every stage.
