National and Global Energy Trends

This lesson explores how energy use is changing at national and global levels, the social, economic, and environmental factors that influence energy choices, and the challenges of meeting growing energy demand sustainably. This is part of the AQA GCSE Physics specification (Section 4.1).

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Global Energy Demand

The world's total energy demand has increased significantly over the past century and continues to rise. This is driven by:

Factor	Explanation
Population growth	More people means greater demand for electricity, heating, and transport
Economic development	As countries develop, they industrialise and consume more energy
Improved living standards	People use more appliances, heating, air conditioning, and vehicles
Technological advances	New technologies (data centres, electric vehicles) create new energy demands

Global Energy Consumption by Source

Energy Source	Approximate Global Share
Oil	~31%
Coal	~27%
Natural gas	~24%
Hydroelectric	~7%
Nuclear	~4%
Wind and solar	~5%
Other renewables	~2%