Global Solar Council joins the Global Alliance For Sustainable Energy as a founding member

The Global Solar Council and other 16 global energy players launched the Global Alliance For Sustainable Energy, a unique and ambitious initiative that aims to make renewable energy sustainable for people and the planet, and lead a just transition away from fossil fuels. 

The Global Solar Council joined 16 other founding members from across the global renewable energy value chain and the sector’s innovation ecosystem to launch a new organization, The Global Alliance for Sustainable Energy. The initiative responds to the urgent need to decarbonize the global energy system and ensure its complete sustainability from an environmental, social and governance perspective.

GSC and the other founding members share this vision and are united in the recognition of the need for concrete, collective action.Unique in its scope and purpose, the Global Alliance for Sustainable Energy aims to redefine the meaning of sustainable energy to include all those who work in and are affected by the renewable energy industry. It brings together the efforts of civil society, end users, policy makers, academic institutions, material suppliers, Original Equipment Manufacturers and like-minded utilities to work with governments and investors. The founding members of the Alliance are present in every continent and together represent more than 280GW installed capacity worldwide, of which 55.6% comes from renewable sources, and sold almost 100GW of renewable energy solutions.

The initiative, which was launched on September the 16^th in a virtual event– The Sustainability Mission of the Energy Transition: Presenting the Global Alliance for Sustainable Energy – featured speakers from the founding members in discussions on sustainability in the renewables supply chain and progress toward net-zero targets. External experts also provided insights on the key topics for the Alliance, including: Dante Pesce, former Chair and current member of the UN Working Group on Business and Human Rights; Heidi Huusko, Senior Manager, Environment & Climate at the UN Global Compact; Peter Paul van de Wijs, Chief External Affairs Officer, Global Reporting Initiative; Michela Miletto, Director, UNESCO Programme Office on World Water Assessment; and Meredith Adler, Executive Director of Student Energy.   

The Global Solar Council, as the voice of the global PV industry, recognizes the transformative role that solar PV can play in changing economic and social dynamics and has long seen the need for collaborative action and engagement with institutions, businesses and partners to promote rapid, mass adoption of solar energy that is also environmentally, socially and economically fully sustainable.

The CEO of the Global Solar Council,  Gianni Chianetta, one of the keynote speakers at the launch event, explained the potential of solar energy and the need for collaboration, “beyond its climate impact, solar power can make a significant contribution towards the Sustainable Development Goals thanks to a ‘ripple effect’ that fans out into the economic, social and environmental domains, benefiting areas such as health, education, gender equality and poverty alleviation. What is key is a joined-up effort. It’s no longer enough for any one technology, industry or organization to lead the way: we need to lead together, with collaboration and joint action.”

Through the Global Alliance, the GSC seeks to increase engagement and collaboration with key players along the renewable energy value chains, as well as with international corporations.