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Turkey

Turkey's Energy Sector Looking To Supply Developing World

Oil tankers in Istanbul
Oil tankers in Istanbul
Gila Benmayor

ISTANBUL - Fatih Birol, the chief economist of the International Energy Agency, has offered some notable insights into the future of global energy markets. His presentation of the “World Energy Outlook 2012” report that focused on "energy efficiency" will undoubtedly be studied closely by the Turkish Industry & Business Association (TÜSİAD).

But to better understand Turkey's particular situation, it is worth focusing on the recent presentation of Murat Mercan, the Deputy Minister of Energy, who outlined the country's energy vision for the future.

Here are the core points that stood out to me during the presentation:

-Turkey’s demand for energy will nearly double by 2030, rising from 53,000 to 100,000 megawatts.

-This growth will largely be pushed by demand from the private sector.

-For Turkey to be a part of the world’s largest 10 economies by 2023, the public energy authorities and private sector must work hand-in-hand.

-In the next 20 years, Turkey will be home to key new infrastructure, including pipelines, ports, shipping services; the country will boost its own dynamic petrol and natural gas sectors.

-Turkey’s lignite and bituminous coal reserves will play a major role in boosting the economy.

-By 2023, electricity production will be divided into four units. Some 30 percent will be produced from natural gas; 30 percent will come from coal; another 30 percent will come from renewable sources and 10 percent will be nuclear. Mercan highlighted that entering the “nuclear league” is a necessity, not a fantasy.

Global warming

While Mercan outlined Turkey’s energy vision, he reminded the audience that 1.3 billion people in the world live without electricity. As part of its energy goals, Turkey will help supply regions in undeveloped countries with strong energy channels and resources.

“We will support countries in Africa, such as Somalia and Nigeria, and help them lay foundations for more channels,” Mercan told me.

Still, a key factor in Turkey’s energy vision, which was not emphasized in Mercan’s presentation, was energy efficiency and global warming.

IEA chief Birol, raised the issue highlighting that with current policies in place, average global temperatures are set to increase by six degrees Celsius -- which could have catastrophic implications. “If as of 2017 there is not a start of a major wave of new and clean investments, the door to two degrees will be closed,” he said.

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Society

What's Spoiling The Kids: The Big Tech v. Bad Parenting Debate

Without an extended family network, modern parents have sought to raise happy kids in a "hostile" world. It's a tall order, when youngsters absorb the fears (and devices) around them like a sponge.

Image of a kid wearing a blue striped sweater, using an ipad.

Children exposed to technology at a very young age are prominent today.

Julián de Zubiría Samper

-Analysis-

BOGOTÁ — A 2021 report from the United States (the Youth Risk Behavior Survey) found that 42% of the country's high-school students persistently felt sad and 22% had thought about suicide. In other words, almost half of the country's young people are living in despair and a fifth of them have thought about killing themselves.

Such chilling figures are unprecedented in history. Many have suggested that this might be the result of the COVID-19 pandemic, but sadly, we can see depression has deeper causes, and the pandemic merely illustrated its complexity.

I have written before on possible links between severe depression and the time young people spend on social media. But this is just one aspect of the problem. Today, young people suffer frequent and intense emotional crises, and not just for all the hours spent staring at a screen. Another, possibly more important cause may lie in changes to the family composition and authority patterns at home.

Firstly: Families today have fewer members, who communicate less among themselves.

Young people marry at a later age, have fewer children and many opt for personal projects and pets instead of having children. Families are more diverse and flexible. In many countries, the number of children per woman is close to or less than one (Singapore, Taiwan, South Korea, Hong Kong among others).

In Colombia, women have on average 1.9 children, compared to 7.6 in 1970. Worldwide, women aged 15 to 49 years have on average 2.4 children, or half the average figure for 1970. The changes are much more pronounced in cities and among middle and upper-income groups.

Of further concern today is the decline in communication time at home, notably between parents and children. This is difficult to quantify, but reasons may include fewer household members, pervasive use of screens, mothers going to work, microwave ovens that have eliminated family cooking and meals and, thanks to new technologies, an increase in time spent on work, even at home. Our society is addicted to work and devotes little time to minors.

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