wind turbines at sunset

Dear Renewable Energy, 

Never in a million years did I think I’d be so interested in something as electrifying and ground-breaking as you. How is it that you cease to amaze me each and every day? Every time I check the news it’s hydro-electric airplanes or solar-powered toilets, how do you manage to do it every time? To surprise me with your cutting-edge research that can transform lives all across the world?

I still remember the first day I met you. My science teacher kept pointing to the sun and went on and on about how it can power the entire world if done right. Of course, I didn’t even glance at him as he blabbed, all I cared about at that point was whether or not I’d get the coolest pencil in the class.

But then, as I grew older, you started creeping up at the back of my head. Every time I saw something on the news, like that one hospital who lost 50-60 patients due to power outages, I always thought of you. Couldn’t you be the fix to all of this? Couldn’t you make sure that everyone everywhere had steady electricity 24×7? 

And so, from something at the back of my head, you became the only thing I could ever think about. I started reading articles about you, I talked to all my science teachers about how we could implement your various forms in our school, I tried to figure out different ways I could make you the best version of yourself too. You become the center of my eye. 

solar panels during daytime

And as you grew into my life, I realized, you’re all around me. You’re in the water I drink, the sun that hits my face everyday when I wake up, the earth beneath me. If we, as a world, could harness your true potential, there’s no telling how many problems we could solve. We wouldn’t need to worry about the depleting fossil fuels everyday, or the energy crisis we might be plummeting into. 

So thank you, thank you for bringing hope into a world that has only seen peril for the last few decades. Thank you for showing us all that there’s always a solution and that we just need to work our way up to it. You’ve made the impossible possible countless number of times and that has helped set us all on a path to fight these issues rather than lament them. And thank you, from my side specifically, for inspiring me everyday to push the boundaries of science and see how I can use your new forms to make the world a better place, to make sure that one day, no one ever needs to even think about a power cut ever again.

I know we still have a long road ahead of us, but as you change your forms everyday, the rest of us will try our best to see how we can use it to power something up. It’s time we, as a globe, learn to be more careful with how we use you. We’re going to do whatever we can to save you, like turning off all electrical appliances when we’re not using them and even making our processes less energy-intensive. We’re also going to push to use you wherever we can and spread awareness about why you’re the perfect fix to our energy crisis. And now, together, let’s give the world its energy back, one step at a time. 

With love,

Mahidhar

This love letter is part of Planet Home’s Valentine’s Day series. We asked our team to write an ode to a part of the world they feel connected to, and we hope this inspires you to appreciate all things big and small that make our planet feel like home.

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