World Renewable Energy Congress-XI
Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
September 2010
Barbara C. Farhar, Ph.D., Chair

3-3-11

Focusing energy needs in developing countries, and the human impacts of energy policies and programs, the Energy and Gender-Equitable Development (EGED) Section of the World Renewable Energy Congress-XI convened in Abu Dhabi, UAE, from September 25 to 30, 2010. The Technical Committee members organizing the section events were Dr. Barbara Farhar (National Renewable Energy Laboratory- retired, and University of Colorado), Gail Karlsson (ENERGIA, the International Network on Gender and Sustainable Energy), and Dr. Priyadarshini Karve (Appropriate Rural Technology Institute, India). Section sponsors included the UN Foundation, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, and the World Renewable Energy Network.

The EGED Section convened a one-day pre-Congress workshop on energy and gender-equitable development, and then during the WREC presented a series of technical papers focusing on distributed energy options and their importance for poverty alleviation. Representatives from Cambodia, Ethiopia, Kenya, Pakistan, India, Guatemala, The Netherlands, the United Arab Emirates, Ghana, Malta, and the United States presented papers at these sessions. In addition, representatives of the ENERGIA Network, and the Women in Sustainable Energy group based in Denver, Colorado, USA, made reports on the activities of their networks. A key component of the EGED Section is the connections made among professionals working on energy, gender, and poverty issues from around the world.

In all, 19 presentations were made at the Congress, including a keynote address for the EGED Workshop on the global Partnership for Clean Indoor Air (PCIA) given by its director, Brenda Doroski, from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and a plenary address on “Energy, Gender and Poverty: Rays of Light” by Dr. Barbara C. Farhar, Renewable and Sustainable Energy Institute, University of Colorado at Boulder.

The all-day workshop on Saturday September 25 on Energy and Gender-Equitable Development included panels on women’s empowerment through access to energy, international perspectives on gender, sustainable energy and climate change, and recommendations by the group to be presented at upcoming international conferences. The recommendations were offered as substantive contributions to the work of the Global Gender and Climate Alliance at the December 2010 UNFCCC Conference of the Parties in Cancun, Mexico, and the materials submitted by Women as a Major Group to the Secretariat of the 2012 UN Conference on Environment and Development (Rio+20). A partial list of key recommendations follows.

• Recognize, and educate others about, the significant benefits from increased access to energy for women in terms of the Millennium Development Goals, national advancements in health, economic development and social empowerment, and climate change mitigation and adaptation. Include recognition of women’s time, labor and health risks associated with managing traditional biomass fuels as part of national energy plans and accounting.
• Increase funding and support for peer-reviewed academic research in theoretical and applied sciences, including social sciences, on technology development, transfer, dissemination and socioeconomic issues related to expansion of energy access in developing countries, and on monitoring and evaluation of energy and gender-equitable development projects and programs.
• Utilize the expertise of gender and energy experts to include gender analysis in energy policies and projects, and encourage cooperation between energy experts and people working in social sciences, recognizing the critical role of formal and informal education concerning the training, social adjustments, and management issues related to successful adoption of new energy technologies.
• Support training of women on energy-related science and technologies, and opportunities for them to transmit that knowledge to other women, including through programs and centers focused on capacity building for women on clean energy business initiatives and opportunities, with a view to promoting employment and income generation by women as energy experts, managers and entrepreneurs.
• Set targets for women’s involvement in energy access programs, such as scaling up improved cook stoves, including targets for women as managers and entrepreneurs.
• Promote financing, including climate-related investments and funding mechanisms, for gender-sensitive energy access programs, approaches and projects, that can be effective in improving energy access, reducing greenhouse gas emissions, and empowering women.

The full list of recommendations is posted here (pdf) pages 23-24.

In addition to the workshop and technical presentation, other EGED activities during the Congress included a preview of an upcoming film on global population issues (Pushing 10 Billion – Beth Osnes), and the launch of a book of case studies on Biofuels for Rural Development and Empowerment of Women – Gail Karlsson. Mercy Thomas announced the formation of a new Women’s Institute for Sustainable Energy Research (WISER) in Kerala, India, to promote the active participation and leadership of women in the energy sector, sponsored by the U.S. Agency for International Development, South Asia Women in Energy (SAWIE). There was also discussion about potential opportunities presented by the newly-formed Global Alliance for Clean Cookstoves, a new public-private partnership which has set a goal of helping100 million homes adopt clean and efficient stoves and fuels by 2020, in order to save lives, improve livelihoods, empower women, and combat climate change.

The best paper award for the EGED Section went to Mr. Prakash Ghimire, SNV Cambodia, for “SNV-Supported Domestic Biogas Programmes in Asia and Africa.” Honorable mentions went to Nahida Khudadid, Aga Khan Building and Planning Service, Pakistan, for her paper on residential buildings efficiency retrofits in Pakistan’s cold climate, and to Prof. Beth Osnes, University of Colorado Department of Theater, for her presentation on the use of interactive theater to communicate the dangers of indoor air pollution from cooking over unventilated fires, and the benefits of adopting clean cookstoves.

In summary, the EGED Section was highly successful, with great networking and excellent presentations. The Workshop agenda and list of Technical Sessions are attached.

As a direct result of participation in the EGED Section, participants have continued to communicate in the months following the Congress in Abu Dhabi. For example, Marta Rivera is working to install a biogas digester in Guatemala based on a design developed in India. Beth Osnes is travel from the United States to India in 2011 to hold train-the-trainer workshops on using interactive theater to engage village women in sustainable energy issues.

Technical Sessions

Energy and Gender-Equitable Development Section

World Renewable Energy Congress-XI

Abu Dhabi, UAE

25-30 September 2010

Technical Session A: Monday, September 27, 2010 – 11:00-12:30

Chairs: Dr. Barbara Farhar and Gail Karlsson, J.D.

Dr. Priyadarshini Karve “Novel Strategy to Reduce Fuel Wood Consumption at Household Appropriate Rural Level”

Technology Institute

INDIA

Margaret Owino “Overcoming Challenges in Energy Technology Entrepreneurship”

Solar Cookers International

KENYA

Milkyas Debebe “Demonstrating the Benefits of Ethanol Fuelled Cooking Stoves in Gaia Association Refugee Settings”

ETHIOPIA

Technical Session B: Monday, September 27, 2010 – 14:00-15:30

Chairs: Dr. Priyadarshini Karve and Milkyas Debebe

Sheila Oparaocha “Energy Access for the Poor and Women: ENERGIA’s Efforts at ENERGIA Mainstreaming Gender in Energy Access Projects and Markets”

THE NETHERLANDS

Mercy Thomas “Women Empowerment in South Asia – Advancing Access to U.S. Agency for Clean Energy – A Case Example”

International Development

INDIA

Marta Rivera “Survival Energy for the Poor: Proposal for a Regional Legal Fundación Solar Framework”

GUATEMALA

Technical Session C: Monday, September 27, 2010 – 1600-17:30

Chair: Gail Karlsson

David Renne “Roadmaps to Sustainable Development in Off-grid Communities”

National Renewable Energy Laboratory USA

Prof. Beth Osnes “Engaging Women’s Voices through Theatre for Energy

Department of Theater Development”

University of Colorado and USA Film Preview: Pushing 10 Billion

Abstract: Today we are adding 80 million people a year worldwide, roughly the population of Germany. If we continue on our current growth trajectory, there will be a staggering 10 billion people by 2050. According to the Living Planet Report from the World Wildlife Fund, our impact on the earth now exceeds the world’s ability to regenerate itself by about 25 per cent. We are rapidly overshooting the carrying capacity for humans on this planet and heading towards a logical collapse. Environmentalists have avoided the subject of over-population, while politicians, mainstream media and the public at large have misunderstood it. Humanity will never attain sustainability without aggressively dealing with its greatest taboo. Pushing 10 Billion is being produced to alter the negative stigma that is attached to population stabilization by laying out a comprehensive, balanced and available set of solutions that can potentially have a huge effect on our current out-of-control growth. – Beth Osnes

Technical Session D: Tuesday, September 28, 2010 – 11:00-12:30

Chairs: Dr. Priyadarshini Karve and Mercy Thomas

Gail Karlsson, J.D. “Tapping Climate Funds to Expand Renewable Energy Access, ENERGIA Empower Women and Build More Resilient Communities”

USA

Nahida Khudadad “Women Selling and Promoting Energy Efficient Products in Aga Khan Planning and Northern Pakistan”

Building Service (AKPBSP)

PAKISTAN

Prakash C. Ghimire “SNV Supported Domestic Biogas Programmes in Asia and Renewable Energy/Biogas Africa”

Program, SNV Netherlands Development Organization

CAMBODIA

Technical Session E: Tuesday, September 28, 2010 – 14:00-15:30

Chairs: Marta Rivera and Gomathi Nair

Noor Ghazal Aswad “Expanding the Role of Women in Science, Technology, and

Masdar Institute of Science Engineering in the UAE”

and Technology

UAE

Dr. Rose Mensah-Kutin “Promoting Women’s Access to Renewable Energy in the Context ABANTU for Development of Oil Discovery in Ghana”

GHANA

Lalita Balakrishnan “Energy as Women Business-The AIWC Experience”

All-India Women’s Conference

INDIA

Technical Session F: Tuesday, September 28, 2010 – 16:00-17:30

Chair: Gail Karlsson, ENERGIA

Book Launch: Biofuels for Rural Development and Empowerment of Women

Panelists:

Nadine McCormick, IUCN

Lorena Aguilar, IUCN

Sheila Oparaocha, ENERGIA

From the Introduction: “After reviewing information about a variety of different biofuels projects, it seems that village-level projects have great potential in terms of sustainable fuel production and increased access to energy in rural areas of developing countries – if participatory processes are employed in the development and implementation of the projects. On a small scale, locally produced plant oils and biodiesel can successfully be used to power diesel engines and generators in rural villages – for agricultural processing, new enterprises, and income generation. These systems can also ease the burdens of women and foster women’s participation in decision-making processes.”

Technical Session G: Wednesday, September 29, 1020 – 11:00 – 12:30

Chair: Dr. Rose Mensah-Kutin

Kalpakam Yechury “Women as Sustainable Environment Managers in Cooking,

All-India Women’s Health, Sanitation and Water”

Conference INDIA

Manfred Weissenbacher “Energy Consumption and the Empowerment of Women–Lessons Institute for Sustainable Learned throughout History”

Energy – University of Malta

MALTA

Manfred Weissenbacher “Does Increased Energy Consumption Indeed Serve the University of Malta Empowerment of Women in Developing Countries? MALTA A Review of Recent Experience”

7-18-10 Final Saturday Workshop Agenda Barbara Farhar

Engaging Women in Energy Enterprises: A Workshop on Energy and Gender-Equitable Development Organized by the Section on Energy and Gender-Equitable Development World Renewable Energy Congress-XI

AGENDA Saturday, 25 September 2010 Armed Forces Club and Hotel Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates

Sponsored by: The UN Foundation and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, USA Technical Committee: Dr. Barbara Farhar, Gail Karlsson, J.D., and Dr. Priyadarshini Karve

A workshop focused on understanding current issues and impacts of sustainable energy development on poverty in the developing world and using that knowledge to accelerate our transition to a more just energy future

Introduction to the Workshop and Participant Introductions
9:00-10:00	Welcome and Opening Remarks Prof. Ali Sayigh, Chair, World Renewable Energy Congress-XI Dr. Barbara Farhar, Workshop Chair, University of Colorado (USA) Chair, WREC-XI Energy and Equitable Development Section Participant Introductions
Keynote Address
10:00-10:30 Keynote Presentation	Global Clean Cooking Partnership Improves the Health and Environment of Millions     of People Brenda Doroski, Coordinator, Partnership for Clean Indoor Air,     U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
10:30-11:00	TEA BREAK (Refreshments provided)
Discussion Panel on Biomass Fuels, Efficiency, and Alternatives for Cooking
11:00-12:00	Moderator: Dr. Priyadarshini Karve, Appropriate Rural Technology Institute(India) Panelists: Milkyas Debebe, Gaia Association (Ethiopia) Prakash Ghimire, Netherlands Development Organisation (SNV) (Cambodia) Nahida Khudadad, Aga Khan Planning and Building Service (AKPBSP) (Pakistan) Marta Rivera, Fundación Solar (Guatemala)
Discussion Panel on Women’s Empowerment
12:00-13:00 Panel discussion	Moderator: Dr. Barbara Farhar Panelists: Sheila Oparaocha, ENERGIA (The Netherlands) Prof. Beth Osnes, University of Colorado (USA) Mercy Thomas, U.S. Agency for International Development (India) Prof. Manfred Weissenbacher, University of Malta (Malta)
13:00-14:00	LUNCH BREAK (Lunch provided)
Discussion Panel on International Perspectives
14:00-15:00 Panel discussion	Moderator: Gail Karlsson, ENERGIA (USA) Panelists: Andrea Athanas, International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) (Switzerland) Dr. Rose Mensah-Kutin, ABANTU for Development (Ghana) Margaret Owino, Solar Cookers International (Kenya) David Renne, National Renewable Energy Laboratory (USA)
15:00-15:30 Open discussion	United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change COP-16 in Cancun,     Mexico: Gender Perspectives Moderators: Gail Karlsson and Sheila Oparaocha
15:30-16:00	TEA BREAK

Open Discussion
16:00-16:30 Open discussion	Moderators: Gail Karlsson and Dr. Barbara Farhar Further discussion on gender perspectives for COP-16 and on institutionalizing a section on energy and gender-equitable development in the future

 

Briefs and Announcements
16:30-16:50 Briefs	Moderator: Dr. Barbara Farhar Microenterprise and Microfinance Development in India: An Update     Gomathi Nair, All-India Women’s Conference (AIWC) (India) (10 mins.) Women in Sustainable Energy (WISE) in Colorado     Wendy Larsen Bowen, Consultant (USA) (10 mins.) ISES initiative – International Solar Education Exchange (ISEE)     Paulette Middleton, Panorama Pathways (USA) (2 mins.) Joint World Renewable Energy Congress-XII and American Solar Energy     Society Conference, Denver, Colorado, 2012     Barbara Farhar, Renewable and Sustainable Energy Institute, (USA) (1 min.) Quick Review of EGED Technical Sessions
16:50-17:00	Closing Remarks and Workshop Adjournment

Workshop Goals:

• To provide an overview of the EGED technical sessions at the Congress
• To produce recommendations for COP-16.
• To produce a recommendation on the value of institutionalizing a section on energy and gender-equitable development in the future.

In addition, participants gain a better understanding of (a) important issues in gender, energy, and poverty reduction in the developing world; (b) equitable distribution and access initiatives, and (c) the role of sustainable energy in reaching the Millennium Development Goals. Professional networking is encouraged. A report on the Workshop will be prepared.

Acknowledgments:

Financial and administrative arrangements for the Workshop were provided by Prof. Ali Sayigh, WREN Director-General and Chair of the World Renewable Energy Congress-XI, the UN Foundation, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, especially Larry Kazmerski and Bob Noun, and the Institute of Behavioral Science and the Renewable and Sustainable Energy Institute, University of Colorado.

This workshop was organized by Dr. Barbara Farhar, Gail Karlsson, Dr. Priyadarshini Karve, and Julie Teel.