Post by Angela Wilkinson

Three years ago I wrote Time Travel for Energy Transition Leaders. This month, I was delighted to discover that it remains one of the Top 10 most-read energy thought leadership pieces on illuminem and that I have been recognised among its Top 10 Most-Read Thought Leaders in Energy. I’m grateful to everyone who has read, shared and shaped these ideas over the years. And delighted to celebrate and share this recognition with world energy community colleagues and friends.Thaddeus Anim-Somuah Jeremy (JB) Bentham Justice Ohene-Akoto. In 2023, I argued that energy leaders need to become better “time travellers”. Three years later, five reflections: 1. The challenges of moving from imagining futures to building the capabilities and institutions needed to realise them remain. The opportunity for practical learning is increasing as diverse regions shrink the distance between imagination and implementation. 3. There is value in keeping the World Energy Trilemma in view as tensions between security AND equity AND sustainability priorities have become more consequential. 4. Energy transitions are still progressing and moving into harder times. The ‘easy’ choices have been made. The tougher societal transformations depend on trust, institutions and cooperation choices. 5. Let’s stop thinking about world energy as an industry sector. Start thinking about it as the operating system of civilisation and a critical interface as energy–industry–digital transitions reshape one another simultaneously. Our World Energy Council enduring mission - keeping energy for civilisation, not for war, profit or politics - has never been more important. We can still imagine a future of abundant energy for human flourishing, within planetary boundaries. Meanwhile, the world has become more fragmented, geopolitics has intensified, AI is accelerating and new demands for clean power are overwhelming existing infrastructure. Perhaps the futures question has also evolved. Its still not: What future will happen? But more about “whose” future are we rehearsing now? And how can we develop energy literacy and build the new world leadership and stewardship capbilities? Thank you to illuminem for creating a platform where quality thinking, open dialogue and big ideas continue to matter, and to the World Energy Council community and many colleagues around the world who are actively shaping more and better energy futures every day. #Energy #Leadership #EnergyTransition #SystemsThinking #Futures #HumanisingEnergy