Page 47 - Çevre Şehir İklim İngilizce - Sayı 1

Mehmet Emin Birpınar

that there will be changes in energy production. The emphasis on the
formation of a new energy economy in the “2021 World Energy Outlook”
report by the International Energy Agency (IEA, 2021) is a clear sign that these
transformations area inevitable. In fact, another major development that is
a precursor of big transformations in the world was the declaration in the
COP26 held in Glasgow calling for the production of zero emission vehicles in
the world (UNFCCC, 2021b).
The Rise of Green Transformation

In the light of all these considerations, we can suggest that green
transformation is a new development model in our world. Many steps towards
this direction have been taken in our country as well, with the addition of
new initiations every passing day. Especially after the 2053 carbon neutrality
goal, it is obvious that climate and environmentally friendly practices such
as the transformation in energy, electric vehicles, bike transportation, zero
waste movement, environmental label, energy efficiency, clean production in
industry are becoming increasingly common.

The Spread of Climate Friendly Practices
According to the data from the Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources
(TEİAŞ, 2021), our installed power in renewable energy over the last 20 years
has tripled, reaching 53.000 MW, which makes Türkiye the fifth in Europe, and
the 12th in the world. Our country has a wide array of renewable sources such
as biomass, geo-thermal, hydroelectric, wind, and solar power in addition to
clean, zero-emission, climate-friendly nuclear energy, which will ensure the
security of supply and increase our potential further. Especially the fact that
the wind and solar power will stand out as energy sources in the upcoming
years reveals our great potential at this stage.
In addition to developments in climate resilient urban renewal and energy
efficiency, the zero waste movement, initiated by our First Lady, Mrs. Emine
Erdoğan, is one of the primary examples of circular economy model, which
is an alternative to “single use” culture, utilizing the sources efficiently. The
zero waste movement is only one of the steps we have taken to mitigate
greenhouse gas emissions, including clean production methods in industry,
rainwater harvesting, solar panels over roofs, the introduction of energy
performance certificate in buildings, the increasingly common environmental
label applications in goods and services, and legislative regulations and
funding to promote widespread use of bicycles. These investments will not
only mitigate greenhouse gas emissions, but also prevent pollutant emissions,
also called “silent killers”, providing our citizens with clean and healthy air
(ÇŞB, 2022).

32 Journal of Environment, Urbanization and Climate,