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07. January 2014

If Not Us, Who?

Editorial by Prof. Dr.-Ing. Felix Ziegler, Department of Energy Management, Technische Universität Berlin

Prof. Dr.-Ing. Felix Ziegler. Foto: © TU-Pressestelle/Dahl
Prof. Dr.-Ing. Felix Ziegler. Foto: © TU-Pressestelle/Dahl

Looking at the development of energy industry over the past centuries, an interesting time constant becomes apparent. Up until now, it took about 50 years i.e., two generations, for energy sources (coal, oil, gas) and their corresponding technologies to grow from "marginal" (a fraction of less than one percent) to "considerable" (a fraction of about ten percent). While this may not match the pace of development observed in information technology, it is still some what appealing: Involving major investments, energy technology is, in a sense, socially conservative by default. This is precisely why, in the course of the past centuries, those key structures have grown that today seem to partially prevent a speedy reorientation in terms of energy transition.

Energy transition is almost always equated with electricity transition. In fact, the introduction of new electricity technologies has probably never occurred as rapidly as is the case in presentday Germany. The propagation speed of renewable power plants in Germany is indeed unusually high. For the time being, however, this mainly applies to electric energy where, undeniably, we are undergoing a turnaround. As far as heat is concerned, we are however still looking in the old direction while obviously, we also need a thermal turnaround!

It is our belief that Adlershof is the place to demonstrate and perform this turnaround. Featuring planning details regarding the energy future at Adlershof, the present publication proves that "pioneering" here is anything but an empty phrase.

Moreover, the fundamental structures allow for a thinking beyond Adlershof's boundaries, both geographically and in terms of time, as is outlined in contributions discussing the future of heat grids, concrete ideas regarding the integration and storing of energy, or the future of photovoltaics. We do hope that while reading these articles, you will feel that the preoccupation with energy issues is not just an intellectual or ascetic pastime. Nor is it a pure necessity. It's actually enjoyable. John F. Kennedy is attributed the following quote. "If not us, who? If not now, when?" While he may not have had Adlershof in mind, the slogan fits Adlershof's energy strategy perfectly.

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