I’ve often said that I expect France to lead the way in terms of the adoption of clean energy, for two main reasons:
1) They’re self-styled; they don’t ask permission; they just do what they think is right. They refer to this as bien dans sa peau, or “content, comfortable, at ease with oneself.” 40 years ago, they built a ton of nuclear plants. What did they do when the anti-nuke people went bananas? The same thing they did when the U.S. angrily scolded and snubbed them for not supporting its invasion of Iraq in 2003: they stated their opinion clearly, then opened a bottle of good wine, and sat in the cafes discussing Descartes and Voltaire. They simply didn’t care. Now, those nuclear plants are ready for retirement, and the French are looking for a better solution. Again, they’re not asking for suggestions – and certainly not approval. Fortunately, they’re headed in the right direction — and in a big way.
2) They really do public/private partnerships very well, and, as I learned at a fantastic conference here in Southern California a few years ago, there are literally hundreds of them focused on the development of electric transportation, renewables, smart grid, etc.
Here’s an article from SmartGridNews on France’s installation of 35 million smart meters. à la vôtre! (Cheers!)
