Climate change adaptation costs in developing countries could rise as high as US$250-500 billion per year by 2050 according to UNEP. With the world grappling with climate change, we need sustainable solutions to save our precious planet. Air pollution, deforestation and contaminated waterways are major issues, and there is a lot of work to be done in these sectors.
Availability of reliable, low-cost energy is the cornerstone of economic development and is a primary limiting factor for many developing countries. We share knowledge on an energy sector which is undergoing massive change with new technologies that will provide cheaper, more accessible and cleaner energy.
Pico-hydro a new source of energy in Rwanda
In Rwanda, a ‘Pico-hydro’ refers to a power system with a capacity less than 50kW. Their advantage over other power systems is their cost-effectiveness and simplicity, and come in different designs, planning and installation processes. It is an economical source of power that has proven useful in delivering clean energy to some of the world’s poorest and most remote places.
Solar milling machine to ease grinding systems
Whether they are consumed as grains or flour they are always products in high demand in Africa - these being cereals such maize, sorghum, millet and wheat. One of the issues with these widely consumed crops is when people want to grind them and consume them as flour, with most remote areas lacking access to electricity and therefore use expensive fossil fuel to run milling machines.
Commercial solar saving insurance debuts in South Africa
Solar savings insurance products can help boost confidence among companies using solar power alternatives since it insures them against losses on forecasted solar energy savings. The first product of this kind debuted in South Africa last month under leadership of All Power Systems and Synthesis Power in collaboration with Fusion Energy, a clean energy concern based in Stellenbosch.
Sustainable Ways for Affordable Housing: Prefabricated Homes
Food, shelter and clothing are basic needs for the humankind; but, without an adequate standard of living, these core principles are hard to achieve. With less than ten percent of Africans living in decent housing in urban areas, the need for affordable, sustainable technology for housing has never been greater. Most African governments have backed the concept of prefabricated housing and realize that it is an ideal solution to close the gap of housing problems in their countries
Monitoring Household Connectivity to the National Grids through Geospatial Technology: World Bank’s Electricity Access Tracking Tool
The World Bank's Main Grid Connectivity-Mapping Tool is a an approach that can be used ot clearly understand electricty capabilities in an area at a granalar level. As companies take a cleanleap to being powered by solar, it is a way of routing their solar energy inventory to spaces where there is low connectivity.
Croton plant offers some hope for biofuel enthusiasts
The Croton tree, which is commonly known as Mukinduri in Eastern and Central part of Kenya, is now a good known source of biofuels and that is being practiced. It grows in a challenging environment and unlike jatropha and palm, it won't bring food and fuel competition. It has no chemical additives and burns cleaner than traditional diesel fuel, with no sulfuric content. It can save our environment from carbon emissions and help in better land usage.
Using lean data to improve the solar power sector
Many companies use traditional methods to measure the impact of solar power investments such as quoting the many dollars invested, number of people using their kits and areas covered by their product, which are inadequate tools for measuring social impact for solar power investments if we have to get it right. Traditional approaches of gathering data are not only expensive, take time to give results and complicated to use, but are also not helpful in terms of boosting solar power funding. The lean data approach proposed by Acumen could, not only bridge solar power funding gaps in developing worlds, but will also help companies to understand emerging markets.
Emerging Economies Leading the Way in Off Grid Home Energy
Research undertaken by Greentech Media (GTM) predicts that over the next five years, the global solar market will demonstrate a cumulative average growth rate of around 8%, with emerging economies including India and Latin America leading the progress.
Turning waste into electricity to benefit Nigeria’s off-grid communities
In Nigeria a young green energy innovator has developed an electric mini-grid powered by biogas made from organic waste, and the power it’s generating, is benefitting 550 people of Rije village in Abuja. Dubbed Waste2Watt, this first of its kind renewable energy project in the country, is generating 20 kilowatts of power, after converting agricultural and communal organic waste into electricity, by use of a biogas digester. The electric power generated is then distributed via a mini-grid to the villagers.