A while ago, I was having a conversation about how we would transition to a renewable future. A few people said that we couldn’t possibly do it because there wasn’t enough energy in renewables to do it. As we tried to explain that we could use the current energy sources to start the process off they said, “No, no, no! You can’t do it!” and the conversation quickly ran downhill.

In the process of trying to explain how it would work (and you can get a wonderful example from here http://bze.org.au/ ) I penned this little thought bubble. I think it puts it in context and helps make the connection.

You have a sack of grain.
You eat the sack of grain.
The grain is all gone.
You starve.

—————

You have a sack of grain.
You plant some of the grain.
You eat the rest.

You harvest several sacks of grain.
You plant some of the grain
You eat the rest.

You harvest many sacks of grain.
You plant some of the grain
You feed some to your animals
You eat the rest.

You harvest many sacks of grain.
You plant some of the grain
You feed some to your animals
You eat the rest.

And so on…

Now consider…

You have a bucket of oil…

What do YOU think?