Ambassador's Opening Remarks
Alternative and Renewable Energy Conference

David Intercontinental Hotel, Tel Aviv
Wednesday, November 8
(as delivered)

Thank you very much. It is a great honor and a pleasure to be here this morning. I welcome this opportunity to speak to you about the U.S. approach to alternative and renewable sources of energy.

First, though, allow me to comment on the significance of this important conference. With high energy prices threatening to derail economic development in many countries and skewing the global distribution of income in some very worrisome directions, the topic before us could not be more timely. Like Israel and many other countries, the United States today is seized with issues of energy security, which have strategic and economic implications for all nations. The ways in which we meet the challenges of providing energy supplies for our citizens also have important implications for the health of the environment. Conventional energy sources have been found wanting in both areas; hence, the search for alternatives is intensifying.

As we meet today, the Government of Israel - like the U.S. Government - is focused on the identifying alternative and renewable energy sources which are also reliable and affordable. Prominent Israeli academic institutions are taking important steps to support this effort. Their research will help frame decisions on energy strategies and enable the development and commercialization of emerging technologies that will increase the role that alternative and renewable sources of energy play in the world economy.

Just last week, I took part in a conference inaugurating Haifa University's new Center for Advanced Energy Studies. I spoke on the important role that transit countries, such as Georgia, play in helping to transport energy resources from land-locked countries to global markets. Although I was speaking about conventional, non-renewable resources, in a way, I was also speaking about alternative energy. The focus of my remarks was on the contribution that new sources of petroleum make to increase competition and expand choices for consumers. These are exactly the same benefits we seek in our pursuit of alternative energy technologies! I am confident that over time Haifa University's new center will produce broad-based policy recommendations that will benefit the Government of Israel, researchers and entrepreneurs, and most importantly energy consumers, that is, all of us.

The Weizmann Institute of Science is also launching an ambitious new Research Center for Renewable and Alternative Energy. Weizmann's leaders are committed to applying the Institute's multidisciplinary approach to cutting edge research to make this new center a world leader in alternative energy research in a broad range of areas of inquiry, from plants and biomass to plasma and particle physics.

Obviously, the sponsors of today's conference recognize the importance of new and diversified energy sources. The U.S.-Israel Science and Technology Commission and the BIRD Foundation, which are both joint efforts between Israel and the United States, have appropriately placed a new emphasis on this field.

In response to the growing crisis in energy supply, in his State of the Union Message this year, President Bush announced an Advanced Energy Initiative to support and guide U.S. efforts. The Initiative provides for a 22-percent increase in funding for clean-energy technology research through the US Department of Energy. Dr. Allan Hoffman of USDOE is here with us today to participate as a speaker and discussant in this conference, and I am sure that he will have much to say about America's new initiative. However, allow me to give you a foretaste.

Here's how President Bush described our plans, "To change how we power our homes and offices, we will invest more in zero-emission coal-fired plants, revolutionary solar and wind technologies, and clean, safe nuclear energy. To change how we power our automobiles, we will increase our research in better batteries for hybrid and electric cars and in pollution-free cars that run on hydrogen. We will also fund additional research in cutting-edge methods of producing ethanol, not just from corn, but from wood chips, stalks, or switch grass."

Of course, America's commitment to alternative energy did not just begin with President Bush's State of the Union address. Since 2001, the United States Government has spent nearly ten billion dollars to develop cleaner, more reliable alternative energy sources.

I've been around long enough to see how advances in technology can transform societies by creating better, lower cost options for consumers. The power of science and technology can and will help us to find new and significant solutions for the critical challenges facing humanity, including our pressing need for sustainable, environmentally friendly energy sources. The President's exciting vision will create a policy environment to facilitate such scientific breakthroughs and ensure their rapid commercialization. I also strongly believe that it will help energy research to become an important part of the special relationship between the United States and Israel.

You may have heard of the International Partnership for the Hydrogen Economy. American participation in this Partnership is based on the 1.2 billion dollar Hydrogen Fuel Initiative that President Bush announced in his 2003 State of the Union Address. Although Israel is not yet a member of the Partnership, Israeli researchers and institutions can already take part in research projects under the Partnership. These projects are led by a variety of member countries including the United States. I have no doubt that there are many potential synergies between emerging research in Israel and efforts under the Partnership, and I urge Israeli researchers to seek out the Points of Contact for IPHE projects.

Two other fields where American and Israeli scientists should consider cooperating are biofuels and solar energy. As I mentioned, President Bush's plans include an emphasis on these particular alternative energy sources. Israel already has expertise in both. I am sure we can find many opportunities for research and business partnerships between Americans and Israelis in these two areas.

As I noted at the beginning of my remarks, both of our countries are looking at how we can best meet our growing energy needs in an era of supply constraints and uncertainties as well as of rising financial and environmental costs of fossil fuels. It is therefore fitting for the United States and Israel to have a broad dialogue on policies to encourage a shift towards alternative and renewable energy sources. We should also not forget to compare notes on our efforts to encourage and increase energy efficiency, which in many instances may prove to be the cheapest, simplest way to stretch our budgets and protect our environment. Wherever and whenever possible, we should find appropriate means to join our research efforts in this area too.

It's been a pleasure to join you today. I look forward to taking part in the conference and learning its results, and to future work to enhance and expand what we have begun here today.

Thank you very much.