Debut issue of Journal of Energy in Southern Africa. 1990. Volume 1 Issue 1

Abstract

EDITORIAL BY THE NATIONAL ENERGY COUNCIL Energy research in Southern Africa is currently being conducted over a wide front. It varies from sharply focused and specialised technical research at one end of the spectrum, to multi-disciplinary applied research into appropriate energy technology at the other. Likewise, diverse organisations are involved, from government institutions to the individual in the private sector. It is an unfortunate fact however, that researchers and decision-makers are not adequately informed about ongoing research, and about the results and implications of research already completed. Admittedly, researchers do publish their results in a variety of journals, both locally and internationally. But whilst this meets the needs of the researcher, it does not satisfy the needs of the energy community at large in order to gain an overall impression of the research scene and the results achieved. To improve the communication of ongoing energy research in this country, the National Energy Council (NEC) has undertaken to offer financial support for the first two years of this new journal. Through this journal, the NEC hopes to stimulate the local energy debate, thereby providing appropriate information not only to policy- and decision-makers, but to all researchers and other interested parties. The energy sector deals with scarce resources, such as manpower, money, the natural environment and fossil fuels, all of which need to be used optimally. As always, competition is an important factor, making appropriate information essential. The journal is being launched at a time when the NEC is changing its approach from sponsoring objective-driven research and development to one supporting outputdriven research and development, where the production of tangible results involving specific receivers is stressed. The output of this project to support the initial launching of this journal is to publish six issues over the two-year contract period, resulting in an eventual subscription target of 500. It will focus on the results of applied research within Southern Africa. The readership of the journal will, hopefully, come from the ranks of the energy decision-makers and researchers from government departments, Eskom, local authorities, and oil, coal and renewable energy companies, as well as consultants and manufacturers of energy products and systems. Much could be said about the purpose and the approach to local energy research and development. It becomes a particularly thorny issue in a relatively small geographical area such as ours, where aspects such as the following are constantly debated: • a suitable balance between basic and applied research • the timing and extent of local research in relation to that in other countries • the respective R&D responsibilities of the public and private sector • the development of local expertise, products and solutions as opposed to acquiring them from other countries • pure technical research versus applied multi-disciplinary and field research The journal will, no doubt, be covering the majority of these topics in due course. Undoubtedly, the reaction to and feedback from its readers is the lifeblood of a publication of this nature. Suitable contributions, such as review articles and analyses of trends in local research and development, from researchers, decision-makers and readers in all disciplines and fields of energy, are therefore warmly welcomed. Readers may also wish to submit book reviews and reports on conferences and visits abroad. The impact and credibility of this journal will be dependent on the contributions of the researcher, evaluator, reviewer, analyst and commentator. To assist in producing a journal of excellence, the Editorial Committee looks forward to a lively exchange of ideas with readers. Ultimately, it is hoped that this journal will contribute to a visionary, ethical and responsive energy sector.