We've reached 'peak carbon'. The world is increasingly acknowledging that higher concentrations of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases in the atmosphere increase the overall temperature of the planet, which changes planetary weather patterns, and that this changing climate is expensive to adapt to.
As such, we're emitting a more than economically optimal amount of carbon dioxide, and demand overall should drop. Hence, peak demand. More energy consumption can give us more good things, so the energy consumption itself isn't bad, but we've reached a point where the side effects of the energy consumption are eating into the benefits we get, probably past the point of marginal benefit overall.
mmh sure. I think your take is extremely optimistic, you mention The World as if there were a collective direction, but from where I stand CO2 emissions look like the ultimate example of the tragedy of the commons.
Also the side effects of benefits have large delays, so economics are very dependent on the rate of discount you use for your net-present-value calculation...
As such, we're emitting a more than economically optimal amount of carbon dioxide, and demand overall should drop. Hence, peak demand. More energy consumption can give us more good things, so the energy consumption itself isn't bad, but we've reached a point where the side effects of the energy consumption are eating into the benefits we get, probably past the point of marginal benefit overall.