The GoodyGood Blog

For lots of us, climate change feels totally overwhelming, and the actions of individuals can feel like too little, too late. That’s understandable, but at GoodyGood, we’re not big on sticking our heads in the sand - we’re more into sticking our hands up. We believe very strongly that if everyone did just a  little bit, it would help a lot. That’s why we’ve made it easy and affordable for anyone to offset their carbon emissions. It won’t solve climate change on its own, but it’s one small thing almost anyone can do, and it makes a positive difference.

The Rise of Solar

Reading the news can bring on feelings of impending doom when it comes to climate change. There are plenty of things to be positive about though, like the incredible rise of solar power. 

According to TechXplore, the world created more new solar capacity in 2023 than every other power source combined, and at the current rate of growth, solar has the potential to displace fossil fuels entirely by 2050. That’s huge!

Solar’s increasing affordability and efficiency have made it a top choice for individuals, businesses, and governments worldwide. Solar energy installations are skyrocketing, with annual capacity additions setting new records year after year. This surge in solar power adoption has resulted in a significant reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, and it’s created thousands of new jobs. On top of that, solar power systems are pretty low-maintenance, which means they’re both sustainable and cost-effective.    

Technological Innovation

The rapid growth of solar power has sparked a wave of technological innovations, driving the industry forward. Researchers and engineers are continuously pushing boundaries to boost solar panel efficiency, storage capacity, and durability. Exciting breakthroughs in material science, such as perovskite solar cells, hold a lot of promise for even-higher energy yields, and improved energy storage technologies (like lithium-ion batteries) are enabling solar energy to be available round the clock. As solar power develops, crazy new technologies such as floating solar farms, solar roadways, and transparent solar panels are being explored.

The Challenge

One of the tricky things for solar power is the large cost of setting it up. That’s not as big a problem for places like Australia, but for countries with less public cash, it can be a bit tricky. That’s why one of our main carbon offsetting projects is helping to fund solar power in Chile, where they need more and more electricity generation for people and businesses. Unfortunately, even though Chile has a choice environment for solar power, a lot of the new electricity generation being planned is for coal, purely because it’s cheaper to set up (though more expensive in the long run).

Run under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), the project we support helps to build a connected grid of solar generation sites, so that more of Chile’s growing need for power is met by clean, renewable sources, rather than stuff that has a big climate impact. As more of these sites get built, they can replace fossil-fuel based power plants, helping reduce pollution even more.

The Future

The boffins reckon that the world needs somewhere between double and triple our current supply of solar energy if we want to totally replace fossil fuels (you might expect it to be more, but electricity is super energy-efficient!) At the current rate of growth of roughly 20% per year, that could be doable within the next ten years. The world has enough resources, space and manpower to make it happen, we just need the powers-that-be to move things in the right direction.

Take a moment to bask in the warmth of positive news about solar power. It’s clear that solar energy is a vital part of our sustainable future. From its key role in reducing carbon emissions and combating climate change, to its economic empowerment and job creation potential, solar power is a proven game-changer, a win for nature, and a no-brainer. 

Funding solar power in Chile is available as part of our Mixtape and Global plans. Sign up today if you want to make an impact.