The global landscape for sustainability and clean energy is undergoing a significant transformation, driven by substantial investments and strategic initiatives across various regions. In the US, 2023 appropriations allocated $3.5 billion to the Department of Energy’s Office of Science for energy efficiency and renewable energy projects, including hydrogen, batteries, and photovoltaics. NASA’s Earth System Observatory is set to advance climate change studies with new satellite missions, while ARPA-E’s $470 million budget underscores the emphasis on innovative energy solutions.
Across the pond, the Horizon Europe program, with a budget of €95.5 billion, integrates the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) into its framework, focusing on climate adaptation, clean energy, and sustainable cities. The program’s five missions and six clusters, including climate, energy, and mobility, reflect a comprehensive approach to sustainability. The UK’s Innovation Strategy and recent budget allocations emphasize photonics and clean energy as key technologies, aiming to capture a significant share of the global market in green industries.
In Asia, Japan’s 6th Basic Plan and Moonshot Program illustrate a forward-thinking approach to sustainability, with goals for carbon neutrality, smart cities, and renewable energy. China’s 14th Five-Year Plan sets ambitious targets for low-carbon energy systems and green industry growth, aiming for peak carbon emissions by 2030 and carbon neutrality by 2060. Korea’s Green New Deal targets substantial increases in solar and wind capacity, electric vehicles, and hydrogen infrastructure.
These global trends and programs indicate a robust and coordinated effort to advance sustainability and clean energy technologies, and they reflect a shared recognition of the urgent need to address climate change and transition to a more sustainable future.
Photonics, in particular, has transformative potential to address the UN’s 17 SDGs, and represents a critical technology pathway for solving these complex global challenges. Renewable energies, Earth observation and climate studies, food and water security, green manufacturing, and natural resource management are at the center of a Venn diagram where the SDGs and photonics technologies intersect.
In recognition of the urgency of the 17 goals and our own ethical responsibility to advance them, Photonics Focus is launching a new column called “Photonics for a Better World” that will focus on photonics-enabled technologies that have, at their core, a mission to improve the health and sustainability of our planet or its people.
Photonics Focus has covered topics of sustainability in the past, including photovoltaics, optical sensors, hyperspectral imaging, and laser fusion, which are all fascinating research areas that aim to generate zero-carbon energy or monitor environmental conditions. This column, however, will go beyond the “expected” photonics technologies for sustainability and focus on specific applications.
For example, the March/April 2025 Photonics for a Better World article should cause a buzz. Apiaries in the US report annual losses of bee colonies of 30-40 percent, due largely to the parasitic Varroa mite. These mites feed on the fat bodies of honeybees, weakening them and making them susceptible to viruses that they could otherwise withstand. Infested colonies have significantly reduced lifespans and productivity. But photonics might have a solution: We will learn about a laser-based solution for eradicating Varroa mites at the entrance of beehives.
Technologies like these have the potential to make an outsized impact. As photonics researchers and engineers, our mandate is clear: Leverage the extraordinary potential of light-based technologies to create measurable, scalable solutions that address the most pressing global sustainability challenges.
If you or someone you know is working on a photonics technology that could change the world for the better, or will make progress on one or several of the UN Sustainable Development Goals, please contact Photonics Focus! photonicsfocus@spie.org.
