The combination of climate change, the inherent limits of natural resources and the need for energy sovereignty is forcing humankind to embark on an energy transition, which must meet the formidable challenge of replacing fossil energy sources (coal, gas and oil) with other energies, whether electric or non-electric : nuclear, solar, wind and bioenergies. The challenges are many : the need to address the issue on a global scale, the need to solve technological problems (energy storage, mobilization of biomass, transformation of a whole range of industrial processes, etc.) as well as the economic and social problems that inevitably accompany this transition.
The year-long lecture 2022-2023 will provide an introduction to these issues, reviewing the current energy and climate context, and discussing the various possible energy scenarios that have been developed in recent years to inform French energy policy. It will continue during the year 2023-2024 with an update on scientific and technological advances in the ongoing energy transition : technologies for decarbonizing transport, housing and industry, energy storage technologies (hydrogen), production of synthetic fuels, biofuels and biogas...
These lectures will be accompanied by seminars given by specialists in climate, nuclear energy, mineral resources, housing energy, energy storage and more.