Energy Innovation’s (EI) Energy Policy Simulator (EPS) has been recognized as a finalist in Fast Company’s second annual World Changing Ideas Award, which recognize policies, projects, and concepts that offer innovative solutions to the issues facing humanity.
The free and open-source EPS is a peer-reviewed computer model that evaluates the impact of hundreds of policies on pollutant emissions, financial costs and savings, human lives saved, and more. EI and its network of international partners have developed models for Canada, China, Indonesia, Mexico, Poland, and the United States. Together, these countries represent 46 percent of global emissions.
“The EPS enables policymakers, companies, and ordinary people to estimate the effects of energy and environmental policies, and anyone can freely use it or adapt it to a new country,” said EI Industry Program Director and Head of Modeling Jeffrey Rissman. “For example, the Chinese version of the simulator was developed in partnership with the Chinese central government, who used the tool to help select energy-saving policies for inclusion in China’s 13th Five-Year Plan.”
The World Changing Ideas Awards showcases winners and finalists from a pool of more than 1,300 entries in 12 categories from Food to Energy to Developing World Technologies. A panel of eminent judges selected winners and finalists based on feasibility and the potential for impact. The 2018 awards featured entries from across the globe, from India to Brazil to Rwanda.
EI and its partners have used the EPS to evaluate the impacts of government announcements and identify policies that would achieve policymakers’ goals. Examples of U.S. analysis include predicting the impact of repealing the Clean Power Plan, rolling back federal fuel economy standards, and predicting how policy changes and technology prices may impact the future of electric vehicles.
Examples of international analysis include identifying policies that would enable Mexico to achieve its emissions targets, policies that would allow China to peak its carbon dioxide emissions before 2030, and policies that would empower Canada to reach its commitment to the Paris Accord.