Energy and Enviroment

This module will cover the current trends of energy production, consumption and trading, focusing mainly on the technical side of the subject, but also placing it into historical context. As the population of Earth is continuously increasing, and the economy of high-populated countries is also growing, ensuring a safe and environmental-friendly energy supply is a major challenge of the 21st century. This growth seems to be unstoppable since James Watt invented the steam engine, although after three centuries we also see the downsides of technical development. Global warming, problems with nuclear waste, safety issues that no-one predicted in the 20th century show that development has to be done in a conscious and sustainable way. This defines the theme of the module: sustainable development and energetics.