Our History

During the Impulse Conference „Promoting Global Transfer Activities for Renewable Energy“ in Berlin on June 8-10 2001, participants from all continents founded the World Council for Renewable Energy. The conference was attended by 450 participants from different continents and mobilised support for IRENA. The World Council for Renewable Energy (WCRE) was established with Hermann Scheer as General Chairman. The WCRE’s initial aim was to work for the foundation of IRENA, which was finally established in 2009.

WCRE Foundation Document (pdf)

This World Council shall be an independent global network of NGOs acting in the field of Renewable Energy, environmental protection and development aid, and of companies and scientific institutes working in that field. Its objective is to give an independent voice to Renewable Energy in the global energy discussion, since the existing World Energy Council is too biased towards the interest of the nuclear and fossil energy industry.

WCRE Counc 3 2001 WCRE Conf 2001 HermannScheer wcre


On 13 June 2002, the WCRE and EUROSOLAR hosted the First World Renewable Energy Forum in Berlin. An „Action plan for the global dissemination of renewable energy” was presented. It states: “Among international organisations one is missing which concentrates with its entire strength on the promotion of renewable energies and constitutes with regard to that the international point of reference: the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA). The contradiction must be overcome that the IAEA promotes the international proliferation of atomic technologies, while there is no comparable international organisation for renewable energies“.

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