Clean Energy Now Cheaper Than Fossil Fuels Worldwide

The global energy revolution is happening faster than most people realize, and it's being driven by something simple: clean energy is now the cheapest option.

Jon Creyts, CEO of the Rocky Mountain Institute and a Forbes-recognized sustainability leader, brings encouraging news from the frontlines of the clean energy transition. Solar and wind power have become less expensive than coal and gas, and countries around the world are embracing renewables at record speed.

"Roughly 80% of the world looks at clean energy and says, 'This is what we need. This is what the most affordable solution is,'" Creyts explained after returning from the recent COP30 climate conference. Nations like Brazil, India, Australia, and Morocco are racing ahead with renewable projects, motivated by cost savings and energy security.

The technology we need to tackle 70% of climate change already exists and works affordably. RMI, founded in Colorado in 1982, helps governments and companies implement these solutions worldwide. In India, the organization is electrifying public buses and millions of delivery vehicles, cutting fuel costs while making the air cleaner to breathe.

Back home in the U.S., mountain town utilities are pioneering battery storage systems that keep power flowing during outages. These same innovations will soon mean homeowners can buy HVAC systems with backup batteries, staying warm in winter and cool in summer even when the grid goes down.

The remaining challenges aren't about inventing new technology. Heavy industries like steel and cement production still need breakthrough solutions, but constant innovation is closing those gaps.

Why This Inspires

What makes this moment remarkable isn't just the technology or the economics. It's that communities worldwide have realized clean energy simply makes sense for their future, regardless of politics or preconceptions.

Small utilities in Colorado mountain towns are leading with resilience solutions. Developing nations are leapfrogging fossil fuels entirely. The transition is happening because it works, saves money, and builds stronger communities.

The greatest barrier to solving climate change isn't technical anymore, Creyts says. "It's about us. It's about how we work together to scale and overcome some of the barriers." When people focus on shared goals like affordable energy and cleaner air, progress accelerates naturally.

Meanwhile, renewables now make up the overwhelming majority of new energy capacity being built in both the U.S. and abroad. The market has spoken, and it's choosing clean power.

The world isn't waiting for perfect consensus to build a cleaner, more affordable energy future.