Introduction

Energy is essential for human development and energy systems are a crucial entry point for addressing the most pressing global challenges of the 21st century, including sustainable economic and social development, poverty eradication, adequate food production and food security, health for all, climate protection, conservation of ecosystems, peace and security. Yet, more than a decade into the 21st century, current energy systems do not meet these challenges.

A major transformation is therefore required to address these challenges and to avoid potentially catastrophic future consequences for human and planetary systems. The Global Energy Assessment (GEA) demonstrates that energy system change is the key for addressing and resolving these challenges. The GEA identifies strategies that could help resolve the multiple challenges simultaneously and bring multiple benefits. Their successful implementation requires determined, sustained and immediate action.

Transformative change in the energy system may not be internally generated; due to institutional inertia, incumbency and lack of capacity and agility of existing organizations to respond effectively to changing conditions. In such situations clear and consistent external policy signals may be required to initiate and sustain the transformative change needed to meet the sustainability challenges of the 21st century.

The industrial revolution catapulted humanity onto an explosive development path, whereby, reliance on muscle power and traditional biomass was replaced mostly by fossil fuels. In 2005, some 78% of global energy was based on fossil energy sources that provided abundant and ever cheaper energy services to more than half the people in the world.

Introduction

Energy is essential for human development and energy systems are a crucial entry point for addressing the most pressing global challenges of the 21st century, including sustainable economic, and social development, poverty eradication, adequate food production and food security, health for all, climate protection, conservation of ecosystems, peace, and security. Yet, more than a decade into the 21st century, current energy systems do not meet these challenges.

In this context, two considerations are important. The first is the capacity and agility of the players within the energy system to seize opportunities in response to these challenges. The second is the response capacity of the energy system itself, as the investments are long-term and tend to follow standard financial patterns, mainly avoiding risks and price instabilities. This traditional approach does not embrace the transformation needed to respond properly to the economic, environmental, and social sustainability challenges of the 21st century.

A major transformation is required to address these challenges and to avoid potentially catastrophic consequences for human and planetary systems. The GEA identifies strategies that could help resolve the multiple challenges simultaneously and bring multiple benefits. Their successful implementation requires determined, sustained, and immediate action.

The industrial revolution catapulted humanity onto an explosive development path, whereby reliance on muscle power and traditional biomass was replaced mostly by fossil fuels. In 2005, approximately 78% of global energy was based on fossil energy sources that provided abundant and ever cheaper energy services to more than half the world's population.

Comparative (corporate) governance for nonprofit organizations: an emerging research area

Nonprofit organizations have long been regarded as the “neglected stepchildren” in the shadow of their for-profit counterparts. This situation is changing both in the US and in Europe: the economic importance of the nonprofit sector is already impressive and is still rapidly growing, as demonstrated by the results of the empirical comparative studies of the Johns-Hopkins Comparative Non-Profit Sector Project of the Johns-Hopkins University in Baltimore. For the foundation sector this is true as well, particularly in Europe, and transnational activities of foundations are increasing more and more, as an empirical study from winter 2008 shows. The foundation sector in the European Union countries may be even larger than in the US.

Yet the law has not keep abreast with this development, certainly not in Europe. Foundation law in particular has remained one of the most national-minded law areas in Europe. This is mostly because of national tax law, which is loath to grant any tax benefits to non-residential institutions; however, it is also because of very different traditions relating to foundations. These embedded approaches range from a very rigid attitude – for example, in France – to a marked liberalism – to be found, for example, in the Netherlands and Austria – and even to the nearly full laissez-faire of Liechtenstein, which, as the self-appointed foundation paradise, has met severe international problems, as evidenced recently by the German–Liechtenstein tax evasion diplomatic controversy in 2008.