WRI energy experts Lily Odarno and Sanjoy Sanyal discuss how advances in data, technology and finance can bring power to the 600 million sub-Saharan Africans lacking access.
Blog Posts: energy access
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by - More than 600 million people in sub-Saharan Africa lack access to electricity; 71 million in Kenya and Tanzania alone. Rentable solar systems can provide a safe, affordable solution, but they haven't taken off – yet.
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by - U.S. states often tussle over who can attract the most innovative, high-growth businesses. Governors can increasingly point to a new factor that makes their state competitive: affordable renewable energy.
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by , and - When delegates gather in Quito for Habitat III to adopt the New Urban Agenda for sustainable cities, they should keep in mind people like Adelaida, a banker and mother in Accra, Ghana, where unreliable, expensive electricity is a challenge. As a forthcoming paper of the World Resources Report shows, ensuring access to affordable energy and the economic opportunity it brings will be essential for a sustainable, prosperous urban future.
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by , and - A changing climate means less rain and lower water supplies in regions where many people live and much of the planet's food is produced, as clouds retreat toward the North and South poles. A new study shows this cloud shift is already taking place, with huge implications for agriculture, industry and municipal water provisioning.
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by , and - Most of the energy information out there is on physical grid connections rather than quality and reliability issues, like frequency and duration of power outages. Two innovative data initiatives are emerging to gather this information and improve electricity access in India.
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by , , and - Africa is home to some of the fastest-growing economies on the planet, but the lack of affordable, reliable energy could challenge continued economic and social development. Distributed power generation could be part of the solution.
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by - To help city leaders shift to a planning paradigm that creates more compact neighborhoods and sustainable cities, EMBARQ has released a Transit-oriented Development Guide for Urban Communities.
The guide combines best practices from existing communities and design guidelines for creating healthy, sustainable, people-oriented cities.
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by and - Energy efficiency programs in world's major developing countries could save 1,500 Terawatt hours of energy and save consumers US$ 1.5 trillion by 2030.
But despite their “win-win” nature, the purchase of energy efficient appliances remains low in some countries—including in India. This is in part due to low levels of involvement by local civil society organizations (CSOs) in the energy efficiency standards and labeling (S&L) process.
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by - A social entrepreneur invests the little working capital she has to bring solar electricity to a community that –like 1.2 billion people worldwide– lacks access to electricity. The community used to use dirty, expensive and choking kerosene for light to cook by and for children to learn by. The entrepreneur knows she can recoup her costs, because people are willing to pay for reliable, high-quality, clean energy – and it will be even less than what they used to pay for kerosene. Sounds like a good news story, right?
Three months later, the government utility extends the electrical grid to this same community, despite official plans showing it would take at least another four years. While this could be good news for the community, one unintended consequence is that this undermines the entrepreneur’s investment, wiping out their working capital, and deterring investors from supporting decentralized clean energy projects in other communities that lack access to electricity.
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