If the murmurings of the local and international media are anything to go by, there is a great deal of expectations being placed on increasing the role of renewable energy in our society.

Since 2008, I have been involved in doctoral research at the Royal Holloway University of London investigating renewable energy and its role as a sustainable development strategy in small island states, with a particular focus on Bermuda as a case study.

While part of my research has been concerned with further quantitative verification of the renewable energy resource base available to Bermuda, a significant concentration, and possibly more critical concern, has been paid to examining socioeconomic factors associated with its increased promotion and integration.

In essence, the research seeks to ask: "Does renewable energy integration truly fit into a contemporary sustainable development paradigm?" The themes arising from this aspect of the research have been revealing and offer a buttress towards the increasing attention being paid to this area.

Small islands states like Bermuda have been particularly excited by the potential inherent in renewable energy technologies, as island locales are thought to be disproportionately vulnerable to issues such as global energy security, international energy price volatility and energy dependency on imported fossil fuels. The use of renewable energy technologies is not a novel concept in island locations. Even in Bermuda, although limited in its uptake, the use of solar thermal technology for the heating of water has been present on-island for decades. However, when the Caribbean is observed regionally, Bermuda is in many ways behind the curve, for example with other island locales having large numbers of domestic residences using solar thermal for hot water heating.

Renewable energy has since been cited as a specific stratagem in Bermuda's 2006 National Sustainable Development Strategy, which gained initial momentum under former Premier Alex Scott. Although the ever changing political landscape and the onset of a global economic downturn have since seen the sustainable development discourse lose some prominence, renewable energy has increasingly become a subject of interest.

This peaked interest has arisen mainly due to the high price of oil and its effect on local electricity and fuel prices, the association of "green technologies" as sustainable alternatives and their potential to stimulate new "green economies".

The most recent manifestation of this interest was made evident in now Premier Paula Cox's 2010 Throne Speech.

Although there is not enough space to describe all lessons being learned, many key points have arisen worth mentioning at the outset. A crucial although seemingly unrelated factor involved is that of the role of language and literacy within residents. Older residents and those less educated struggle to decipher the jargon that is attached to emerging techno-centric concepts such as renewable energy.

There is also evidence that those of higher economic means stand to gain the most from the promotion of renewable energy due to their ability to become early adopters, possibly leaving the less economically capable to a marginalised market over time. These challenges may inhibit uptake in segments of the community that may have the most to gain from the technology.

Correspondingly, the research seems to indicate that efforts towards educating home owners on how to make homes more energy efficient may prove better and more affordable as an energy conservation and cost-saving strategy rather than making major financial investments in renewable energy systems.

However, investment in a renewable energy system, for those early adopters who can afford to, may yield big dividends over the long term as not only a green energy source and the achievement of greater energy independence but also as high yield fiscal investment strategy. In order for this to occur, the national regulatory environment must be appropriate for the efficient, safe and affordable integration of the technology; thus, concentrating efforts on getting the regulatory structure to a best-fit seems wise.

The existing labour market seems adequately skilled to deal with the integration of the technologies, as is evidenced by several companies already involved in the industry, and increased uptake may yield additional employment and revenue generation opportunities for Bermudians across the board.

However, if left to a market-driven model, there is a chance that only a select range of corporate players may come to dominate the renewable energy industry similar to that which has occurred with other local industries. The analysis of the research is just beginning but already important themes such as these are being extracted that may help Bermuda and other small island state jurisdictions approach renewable energy integration in the 21st century in a more informed manner.

What seems to be clear is that blanket promotion, acceptance and integration of renewable energy is far from a panacea for "all that ails".

Strong sustainable development in a contemporary framework is defined by themes such as equity, participation and cultural integrity.

Accordingly, indigenous and holistic research into how the promotion of this techno-centric environmental solution can go beyond its "green-tech" and "clean-tech" credentials is essential to achieving all the full benefits that renewable energy may have to offer our local society and allow Bermuda to serve as a true model for those other small island locales with whom we have so much in common.