World View in 2026

Energy justice has shifted from the margins to become a central aspect of energy transitions research, argues Destenie Nock.

As the grid adapts to a changing energy landscape, its traditional role must evolve to balance cost, reliability, and emerging system priorities through fresh thinking in technology, markets, and institutional design, says Mark O’Malley.

Nuclear power continues to pose economic and practical barriers to expanded deployment, argues M. V. Ramana.

As digital tools and sector coupling enable coordinated infrastructure and empower stakeholders, integrated energy systems are driving the transition to low-carbon urban energy, writes Jinyue Yan.

Battery technology has advanced at extraordinary speed over the past decade, yet meeting the world’s accelerating electrification needs will require both continued evolution of lithium-ion systems and further progress in next-generation chemistries, writes Peter Bruce.

Electrocatalytic conversion of carbon dioxide (CO₂) — an emerging approach using electricity to produce useful molecules — has advanced enormously over the past ten years. However, to progress further, we must move away from the traditional static description of catalytic surfaces, argues Beatriz Roldan Cuenya.

To curb greenhouse gas emissions from conventional vapour compression cooling technologies, it is necessary to develop refrigerants with low global warming potential and solid-state caloric cooling devices, argues Ichiro Takeuchi.

Martin Green discusses how, over the past decade — and continuing today — we have witnessed a rapid increase in solar photovoltaic installations, a sharp decline in costs, and swift transitions in the dominant market technologies.

Financial support and research must concentrate on levelling the playing field to ensure emerging and developing economies will benefit from electrification, argues Florian Egli.

After years of technical advances and billions in public funding, carbon capture’s promise now depends on creative alliances — between incumbents and innovators, across borders and sectors — to safeguard past investments and deliver lasting climate impact, writes Jennifer Wilcox.

Wind variability, turbine wake effects, and extreme events are not just challenges but opportunities to deepen our understanding of the atmosphere and enhance the resilience of wind energy systems, argues Julie Lundquist.

The hydrogen ecosystem has developed substantially over the past decade, yet investment volatility and other challenges will require a reinvigorated and cohesive effort to enable success, writes Sunita Satyapal.

Transport electrification is reshaping energy and mobility systems while posing infrastructure, supply chain, and societal challenges that demand bold, interconnected research, argues Patrick Plötz.

Proactive policy and economic support are needed to reduce fuel poverty risk at the end of life, argues Elaine Robinson.