energy

Off-grid multi-energy reporting system and AI load controller – Full Technical Report

Technical Reports /

This report was written to summarise all findings from an InnovateUK Funded research project, aiming to develop a product which could: 1. Report on an entire solar system (AC currents, AC voltages, DC currents, and DC voltages), independent of the equipment manufacturer. 2. Divert excess energy directly from the solar panels to an auxiliary load, …

Off-grid multi-energy reporting system and AI load controller – Full Technical Report Read More »

WR37: Smart Rural Development – the SDGs and the New European Consensus on Development

Workshop Reports /

The Smart Villages Initiative and the European Academies’ Science Advisory Council (EASAC) held a one-day workshop focusing on “Smart Rural Development: the Sustainable Development Goals and the New European Consensus on Development” in Brussels on 20 June 2017. The New European Consensus on Development was proposed in November 2016 and the European Parliament adopted its position in February 2017. On 7 June 2017 at the …

WR37: Smart Rural Development – the SDGs and the New European Consensus on Development Read More »

New study in Energy Policy: Indigenous community preferences for electricity services: Evidence from a choice experiment in Sarawak, Malaysia

External content /

In this new publication, two members of the Smart Villages team along with Malaysian experts from Faculty of Computer Science and Information Technology, Universiti Malaysia Sarawak, Malaysia explore the question of whether communities prefer a community-based model or a utility-based model. The researchers found that the most value was placed on the operator-model underpinning the …

New study in Energy Policy: Indigenous community preferences for electricity services: Evidence from a choice experiment in Sarawak, Malaysia Read More »

WR30: Smart Villages in Haiti: “Energy Week”

Top Story, Workshop Reports /

In Haiti and other islands in the Caribbean, the need is not just for energy access. Communities and villages need to be more resilient to natural disasters and other socioeconomic shocks such as internal conflict, fuel price fluctuations etc. Off-grid energy and innovative use of energy to provide decentralized services such as healthcare and education …

WR30: Smart Villages in Haiti: “Energy Week” Read More »

BR20: Findings from the workshop on energy and agriculture for smart villages in India

Policy Briefs, Resources, Top Story /

Agriculture continues to be central to the lives and economies of rural communities in India. Many of those communities have little or no access to modern energy services. These realities motivated the holding of the workshop “Energy and agriculture for smart villages in India” in September 2016 at the International Crops Research Institute for the …

BR20: Findings from the workshop on energy and agriculture for smart villages in India Read More »

WR25: The water, energy, and food nexus: Lessons from West Africa

Workshop Reports /

Agricultural activities account for 70% of global water usage. Food production and the associated supply chain account for about 30% of total global energy consumed. While there is an awareness of the water, energy, and food (WEF) nexus, there is a lack of effective and integrated initiatives to address it. As described by the United Nations: “The global community is well aware …

WR25: The water, energy, and food nexus: Lessons from West Africa Read More »

BR18: Findings from the Bangalore Forward Look Workshop on mini-grid technologies for India

Policy Briefs /

The Indian Institute of Sciences (IISc) together with the Smart Villages Initiative held a workshop in July 2016 focused on mini-grid energy generation, storage, and transmission technologies in India and how they will be implemented. The workshop was held at the IISc campus in Bangalore and brought together academics, students, policymakers, business people, and NGO practitioners interested in sustainable energy and rural electrification.

WR21: The energy and water nexus for off-grid communities in the Philippines and Southeast Asia

Workshop Reports /

Water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH), energy, and agriculture are topics of great importance to every rural community. In Southeast Asia, these issues overlap in many remote villages where lack of access to energy is often coupled with lack of access to clean drinking water or water for sanitation or agriculture. This report summarises the information …

WR21: The energy and water nexus for off-grid communities in the Philippines and Southeast Asia Read More »

Renewables 2016 Global Status Report

External content, Resources /

2015 was an extraordinary year for renewable energy. Renewables are now cost competitive with fossil fuels in many markets and are established around the world as mainstream sources of energy. Cities, communities and companies are leading the rapidly expanding “100% renewable” movement, playing a vital role in advancing the global energy transition. Distributed renewable energy …

Renewables 2016 Global Status Report Read More »

10 questions to ask about distributed generation

External content, Resources /

10 Questions to Ask about Distributed Generation, a collaboration between WRI, WWF and Prayas (Energy Group), is part of the 10 Questions to Ask Series and provides a framework for stakeholder engagement around the common questions and challenges that arise in the context of planning for and implementing DG option to address electricity access gaps. …

10 questions to ask about distributed generation Read More »

Energy for off-grid villages in Nepal and the role of mini-grids

External content, Resources /

Nepal’s energy situation reflects its challenging terrain (over 75% mountainous) and very low income levels (UNDP, 2013). About 25% of Nepal’s 26.5 million people live below the poverty line, which varies by region but averaged 19,261 NPR per year (or about USD 0.75 per day) in FY 2010/2011 (Central Bureau of Satistics, 2012). The nation …

Energy for off-grid villages in Nepal and the role of mini-grids Read More »

The energy–water–food nexus at decentralized scales

External content, Resources /

This paper uses Practical Action’s experiences with micro-hydro schemes to connect global nexus debates to the experiences of and solutions for remote off-grid communities and smallholder farmers. Through examples in Peru, Nepal, and Zimbabwe we exemplify the need for an integrated approach to energy, water, and food security. We show that decentralized energy provision has …

The energy–water–food nexus at decentralized scales Read More »

Growing power: Exploring energy needs in smallholder agriculture

External content, Resources /

There is a growing interest in how to deliver energy services to people on a low income, not just for household use but to earn a living: the so-called ‘productive uses’ of energy. One sector that deserves particular attention is smallholder agriculture. Expanding access to modern energy services and equipment for farmers could help address …

Growing power: Exploring energy needs in smallholder agriculture Read More »

BR3: Findings from the Nepal Smart Villages Workshop

Policy Briefs /

The Smart Villages Initiative together with its local partner, Practical Action Consulting South Asia, held a workshop in Kathmandu on 10th April 2015 to consider off-grid energy systems in Nepal. The workshop focused on Nepal’s substantial experience of micro/mini-hydro schemes, and on initiatives to stimulate productive enterprises enabled by the availability of sustainable electricity supplies. …

BR3: Findings from the Nepal Smart Villages Workshop Read More »

Energy Innovation Challenge

Press Releases /

The Smart Villages Energy Innovation Challenge, launching today, challenges young East African entrepreneurs to form teams and come up with imaginative ways of distributing or implementing novel or existing energy technologies for off-grid villages. Each team should include one engineer or scientist. The teams with the best entries will win a spot in the Cambridge …

Energy Innovation Challenge Read More »

Scroll to Top