The GNI Working Group comprises of 16 highly accomplished, multidisciplinary international professionals with policy expertise in energy, nuclear, climate change, and security issues. Members represent the United States, Europe, and Asia. They have unique backgrounds and professional experiences, and a demonstrated commitment to finding creative solutions to challenging global problems. Throughout the project, the Working Group will be supplemented by additional subject area and regional experts to provide fresh ideas and new perspectives.
GNI is a joint initiative of the Nuclear Energy Institute (NEI) and Partnership for Global Security (PGS). PGS and NEI believe that today’s complex global challenges and political realities demand a new level of real-world collaboration among innovative and non-traditional partners.
Global energy consumption is expected to grow by 56% by 2040, and world population is projected to reach 9 billion by 2050. This growth is occurring at a time when major greenhouse gas reductions are required to achieve the international community goal of limiting temperature increases to below 2 degrees Celsius. International policymakers are struggling to find the right solutions which simultaneously maintain growth, meet energy demand, and mitigate the risks of climate change.
Approximately 1.3 billion people live without access to electricity the vast majority of whom reside in Sub-Sahara Africa and Asia. Impeded access to reliable and cost-effective energy affects every aspect of a society’s ability to develop and is crucial in the provision of healthcare, sanitation, food production, and education. Developing countries must be able to meet their escalating energy needs, and new energy production must be as clean, affordable, and safe as possible.
Driven by concerns about energy security and greenhouse gas emissions, more countries are pursuing the development of low-carbon energy sources. Nuclear power and renewable energy technology will play an increasing role in global electricity production. In 2012, nuclear power accounted for 10.9% of the world’s electricity production. Today, more than 60 new nuclear power reactors are under construction in 15 countries, and by 2030, up to 10 new countries may be operating nuclear power programs.
If nuclear power is going to be a significant contributor to successfully addressing climate change, how do we manage the expansion of nuclear facilities and materials, including their spread to new, less stable regions in a way that maximizes safety and security and builds international confidence?
Today’s interdependent global environment necessitates innovative approaches to addressing transnational challenges. The interrelationships among climate change, energy security, and global security are becoming increasingly evident: each issue cuts across national borders, has significant economic and social impacts, and requires input from a full spectrum of stakeholders. These similarities mean it is critical that policies which aim to address them be coordinated across issue areas and at the national, regional, and global levels.
During the initial project phase, the GNI produced three major policy memos that described the primary challenges and offered recommendations for addressing them. These memos fed into the groundbreaking report, “Nuclear Power for the Next Generation: Addressing Energy, Climate, and Security Challenges,” published in May 2017. The report included four key findings and offered 22 actionable policy recommendations.
In the second phase of its work, from 2017-2019, the GNI will engage in a series of workshops and small meetings to develop policy recommendations that address the evolving challenges created by the development and deployment of advanced nuclear reactors, emerging nuclear suppliers and newcomer nuclear states, and the geopolitical implications of nuclear power in the 21st Century.
Our objective is to create a transparent and productive process that generates realistic and actionable recommendations for policymakers. The findings of the GNI will reflect workshop outcomes and the viewpoints of the Working Group members, not artificial consensus or ideological preconceptions.
