With every car started in the world, we see our world’s ozone layer breakdown a little every single day. If this continues our world as we know it will cease to exist. Jeffrey Manuel, a historian, refuses to accept this. He believes that choices are what got us into this, and choices will get us out.
Jeff is an associate professor in the Department of Historical studies at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville (SIUe). In 2018 he received the American Council of Learned Societies (ACLS) Collaborative Research Fellowship. He will travel to Brazil, the second largest ethanol producer in the world in hopes to learn from “the history of biofuels in Brazil and the United States.” Looking into the past to gain information that will better our future.
With a personal interest in all things related to the bioeconomy, specifically alcohol fuels (ethanol), Jeff is the perfect man for the job. Being able to research and analyze things from a historical perspective gives him an edge over others. According to Jeff, in the past ethanol was often brought up as a total alternative to petroleum (fossil fuels). So why isn’t ethanol being used? The answer is choice.
The first car to run on gasoline was invented in 1885. This was not the only type of engine at the time, but this one won out over others. “During this time, we see what is called an energy transition, where we went from horse and buggy to cars.” We made a choice, that cars were our future, and subsequently petroleum. This was a huge moment in history that has shaped infrastructure toward supporting cars that run on gas. This choice is also why we see our ozone layer breaking down at an alarming rate.
As of April 2019, there are about 7.7 billion people in the world, and according to Quora 1.2 billion, drive cars. There are billions of gallons of fossil fuels being burned every year, releasing tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. Not only does burning fossil fuels break down our ozone layer, but they will also eventually run out. Forcing us into yet another energy transition. So, what are our options?
Currently, our two main choices are biofuels, ethanol made from corn, and electric cars. Biofuels are entirely renewable; we see ethanol being blended with fossil fuels. The highest blend seen in North America, at E85 (85% ethanol 15% petroleum), more commonly seen at E15. We have electric cars like the Chevrolet Volt, Tesla models, and a few others. Most people would automatically assume that going electric is the obvious better choice. Ideally this may be, but there are a few things holding us back.
Electric cars leave the smallest environmental footprint that a car could make, but most people cannot afford to buy them. Once you have an electric car, where will you charge it? We simply do not have the infrastructure in place to support it. Also, environmental concerns are a global affair. Meaning that we must try to solve this problem worldwide. North America is one of the wealthiest nations in the world, if we do not run entirely on electric yet, we cannot expect the world to do the same.
Environmental concerns are immediate. We need to make changes now. This is the reason Jeff has chosen to do this type of research. There is a huge debate politically about biofuels and their cost and benefits. Moving into the future we want to move in the most intelligent way possible, making the best choice. After all, we always look in the past to make sure we do not make the same mistakes. This is especially imperative when it comes to saving our planet. We look to people like Jeff to put in the work so that we can talk about him centuries to come when our planet still stands.
Hear what Jeff had to say here.