New and Renewable Technologies for Sustainable Development

Sustainability: a widely used, yet complex word. Although unanimously accepted as the key to our future development, the discussion on its applications and implications has not always given the necessary insight into the question. The complex technical and political questions it raises, the global context of the problem of sustainable development, and the many factors involved in its solution have been reasons why the sustainability concept has not been fully investigated via an integrated approach. These conference proceedings touch on various fields of scientific and economic development which should merge efforts in the understanding of the sustainable development concept and technological implications. Engineering practitioners, product developers, researchers and also economists, political scientists and government administrators explore the multifaceted relationship between renewable energy technologies and sustainable development. Keynote lectures frame the technical and policy issues confronting the sustainable development movement and enrich the dialogue between various segments of the community. This dialogue provides the context for more detailed technical presentations and panel discussions on energy systems, renewable resource exploitation, and the engineering design and optimization for minimum resource consumption.