As the age of cheap oil and fossil fuels is coming to an end, humanity will face an energy crisis. Many alternative energy sources have already been identified. However, there is no optimal solution to replace fossil fuels on a short time scale with new sources that are economically viable and environmentally sustainable in the long term. History reports disastrous consequences for human societies that exploited their resources in a non-sustainable way, and arguably this is exactly what is happening today on a global scale. Evidence for climate change is overwhelming.
Federico Rosei is one of the world’s leaders in nanomaterials and its applications in photonics. Concerned about the looming energy crisis, he proposes some solutions involving the use of advanced materials and nanotechnology for energy saving, energy storage and energy conversion.
For more info and speaker's biography see this page: http://sydney.edu.au/sydney_ideas/lectures/2016/professor_federico_rosei.shtml