How Realistic Is a Sustainable World?

Abstract

When Javier Morales, then the deputy mayor of the island El Hierro, part of the Canary Islands Region of Spain, asked me to support the design of a local economy that one day will be independent in water and fuel, it did not take long to propose a strategy based on wind energy, hydro-power and flywheels. The goal was to provide renewable energy and abundant water to stimulate agriculture and local industries. The total investment for this project at the outset in 1997 was estimated at €67 million. The response from the political and financial world was that if this little island of no more than 10,000 inhabitants would require an investment of so much money to achieve self-sufficiency, then we were out to build a “white elephant”.