In the YouTube video, The Mind-Blowing Thing We Get WRONG About Energy by DW Planet A, the team dives into a critical yet often overlooked fact about our energy consumption: inefficiency. Fossil fuels still supply 80% of global energy, and many argue this makes it impossible to switch to renewables quickly enough to combat climate change. However, they fail to consider the massive energy waste in our current system—over two-thirds of all energy generated is lost as “rejected energy.”

This waste occurs at every stage, from generation in fossil-fuel power plants to inefficiencies in everyday appliances like gas stoves and gasoline engines. Transitioning to renewable energy sources like wind and solar cuts out much of this wasted energy because these sources don’t rely on burning fuel. Shifting to electric options, like electric vehicles and heat pumps, further boosts efficiency by making more direct use of the energy produced.

A study by researcher Nick Eyre at Oxford University found that if society fully electrifies and embraces renewables, we could need 40% less energy overall, making a switch to renewables far more achievable than many believe. The takeaway? Transitioning to renewables isn’t just about generating the same amount of energy—we can reduce our energy needs significantly by prioritizing efficiency, a strategy that’s both sustainable and within reach.