Sustainable Energy Access for the Poor: A Means for Promoting Climate Change Adaptation of Communities

Sustainable Energy Access for the Poor: A Means for Promoting Climate Change Adaptation of Communities

Presenter: Mitalee Gupta. (United Nations Development Programme, Asia-Pacific Regional Centre Bangkok, Thailand)

Overview

Climate change is a continuous phenomenon that lacks certainty in terms of local, regional and long- term effects. Poor communities residing in rural areas are likely to bear significant impact from these changes in the climate. Much of this debate around climate change has now reached to a standpoint where adaptation, particularly for most vulnerable communities, has been determined to be the ideal solution. All societies have some in-built mechanisms to cope with the occasional threats such as climatic variability and natural hazards, but this coping capacity is greatly dependent on the economic and social development of the community. Sustainable energy sources and technologies, if deployed in an appropriate manner, can help empower communities by providing them with a host of productive end uses of energy and diversification of livelihoods. This paper seeks to discuss some of the ways in which access to sustainable energy enhances a community’s resilience to adverse and uncertain impacts of climate change, thus enabling them not only mitigate but adapt better.