Published in La República
The widespread access to modern energy is what shaped the era we are living in today. For over two centuries, humans have transformed resources and raw materials into goods and services using machines that run on various sources of energy—thus building the modern economy on a foundation of energy consumption.
If we look through the lens of economic and political history, we’ll find a strong connection between energy, national security, and economic development. In fact, numerous studies show statistical evidence of a positive correlation between GDP and energy consumption dating back to 1850.
It’s no coincidence that in the chessboard of global geopolitics, energy has long been the playing field for major powers. I recently read Jeffrey Sachs, who pointed out the interesting fact that in English, the word “power” refers to both energy and political strength—a symbolic and revealing overlap.
Sachs also noted that the interactions between nations have always been shaped by the distribution of energy resources and the development of technologies to harness them—something deeply unequal. This imbalance will likely persist even in the current energy transition.
However, the emerging map of global power in the context of the transition is still being drawn—especially in the post-pandemic turbulence we’re now experiencing. Our generation has known a geopolitical status quo that solidified after the Cold War and has been led by a Western system.
But the status quo for 2050 is expected to look quite different, driven by various factors—and especially by energy, which acts as a kind of currency in the international system. Those who control access to minerals, financing, and new technologies will be among the winners in this new global realignment.
This is the kind of strategic vision that countries should use to shape their national policies. These policies must rise above short-term political cycles and aim to capitalize on the global shift underway. For instance, energy policy and reindustrialization policy should be closely aligned, as the latter can be structured around the opportunities brought by a decarbonized economy.
Decarbonization, in this regard, demands both global and local solutions, which in turn requires the development of new technologies that will form entirely new value chains—many of which are already taking shape, such as those for solar panels, wind turbines, and storage batteries.
That’s why it is essential to understand the transformation humanity is currently undergoing, and to structure national policies that both respond to local needs and seize global opportunities.
Countries like Colombia should reflect on this and leverage their available energy resources to both maximize revenue for urgent social needs and also reimagine the nation’s future—keeping in mind that “failing to invest in technology development limits the pace of structural change in society.”
Carolina Rojas Gómez
Student, Executive Master of Management in Energy
BI Norwegian Business School
