Power for All

How can women in India and Nepal be empowered as micro-entrepreneurs to combat poverty, promote gender equality, and increase access to renewable energy? In this episode, we speak with Sujatha Ramani from Pollinate Group. We discuss how this non-profit organization empowers female entrepreneurs, known as "Suryamukhi," by providing financing for life-changing products, including affordable clean energy technology. This initiative aims to improve the lives of underprivileged individuals living in slums and villages in India and Nepal. Pollinate Group's impact model addresses the global energy crisis by providing access to essential clean energy products while creating female micro-entrepreneurs to help tackle poverty. To date, this program has empowered more than 2,200 women and positively impacted over 802,000 people in their communities.

A win-win for improved energy access Is access to mini-grids for productive use translating to improved lives for end users? What does this journey look like for customers who gain access to energy? Two thousand mini-grid customers are advancing up the energy ladder toward clean energy, improving their quality of life and enabling income-generating activities for about a quarter of these users, often through small businesses. In an interview, Kat Harrison from 60 Decibels discusses their 2024 report, “Why Off-Grid Matters,” which offers a detailed analysis of the data on ownership of modern off-grid energy products and their impact on access, behaviors, and social dynamics. 60 Decibels, a global tech-enabled social impact measurement firm, offers speedy, repeatable insights and benchmarks for comparing organizational performance. Listen to the Podcast for further insights.

How can we make farming more productive and sustainable with renewable energy technologies? That’s the question we explore in our latest episode of the PowerforAll podcast, where we talk to Michael Maina of CLASP. PUE technologies in agriculture comprise a suite of technologies that include solar water pumps, walk-in cold rooms, refrigerators, and egg incubators. These technologies have huge potential in improving the income of smallholder farmers while simultaneously reducing agriculture sector emissions. But farmers face many barriers to adoption such as high cost and limited awareness about these products. Michael Maina emphasized that the problem requires a holistic solution that goes beyond increasing the adoption of PUE technologies. He said that we also need to address the agricultural issues that affect farmers, such as ensuring farmers are paid fair prices for their produce and that they have timely access to inputs. To achieve this, Michael recommends a cross-departmental coordination mechanism between energy and agriculture sector stakeholders. Michael Maina expressed his optimism that renewable energy technologies will power the agriculture sector in the future. He pointed out the growing investments from various actors, such as development partners, the government, and the private sector, as a sign of the promising potential of these technologies. Listen to the podcast to learn more.

SureChill's cutting-edge refrigeration technology, developed by engineer Ian Tansley with 35+ years of renewable energy expertise, has revolutionized cooling systems by utilizing ice and water to maintain stable temperatures for extended periods. This game-changing solution is particularly advantageous for vaccine storage, even in regions with limited electricity access. With over 25,000 fridges sold in 70 countries, SureChill's patented technology has already facilitated the safe delivery of 71 million vaccine doses. SureChill's success can be attributed to their unwavering commitment to meeting user and community needs. By providing affordable and reliable refrigeration, SureChill empowers farmers to extend the shelf life of perishable goods, boosting their income. Additionally, it enables medical professionals to safely store vaccines and medications. Expanding their product line, SureChill is introducing larger units for agriculture and retail cooling, as well as mains power devices for areas with weak grid connections or individuals seeking greater control over their electricity usage. To gain further insights, tune in to the podcast.

In our first podcast for 2023, Lungile Mashele, an Energy Economist who works for the largest asset manager in Africa, Public Investment Corporation, where she oversees energy projects, and provides technical appraisals on energy projects all over the continent, shared her thoughts on what is likely to trend in the energy sector in 2023. She says anticipates solar PV will be popular globally and say that's because the price has become more favorable as the invasion of Ukraine by Russia continues. “There will be a concerted effort on energy security, especially by European nations, and they will be scrambling to make sure that they get sufficient energy to take them through their next winter as well,” said Lungile. She adds that there is no political will to alleviate the heavy load that is the high energy prices which 60% of the African population can’t afford. Lungile says people who can’t access energy are also denied economic opportunities and she called on politicians to prioritize people’s needs. Africa’s most industrialized economy, South Africa, is struggling to keep lights on and the electricity prices have recently skyrocketed. The country was a case study for this podcast with Lungile saying the problems South Africa faces have a lot to do with internal politics, operational challenges, and lack of investment. Listen to the podcast for full details.

In this last podcast for 2022, we reflect on the COP27 outcomes with Solar Sister Chief Operating Officer Olasimbo Sojinrin. Simbo said she went to Egypt with enthusiasm that the climate conference would be Africa-focused as it was dubbed Africa’s COP. While she commended the work to organize the event, she said important work happened in silos and did not go in the direction she hoped. Simbo also reflects on the responsibility developing nations have to address energy poverty and save vulnerable communities from climate disasters plaguing parts of the world. The consolation prize that Simbo said was worth noting and celebrating was the reached agreement on a funding mechanism to compensate vulnerable nations for ‘loss and damage’ from climate-induced disasters. She said activists fought for this breakthrough for over 30 years. “Though no numbers or targets or set we take as a win,” she said. She said Solar Sister went to the conference with a keen interest to see how gender equity, climate justice, and energy access are tackled. Listen to the podcast to hear Simbo thinks these were handled.

In this podcast interview, Florence Nsubuga, Chief Operating Officer (COO) of Umeme Limited talks about Utilities 2.0 project. Led by Power for All, it unites centralized utilities and the decentralized renewable energy sector to end energy poverty faster.

In this episode, Power for All’s Director of Research, Carolina Pan, speaks to Alessio Terzi who is an Economist at the European Commission's Directorate-General for Economic and Financial Affairs. Alessio is also the author of a book titled, Growth for Good: Reshaping Capitalism to Save Humanity from Climate Catastrophe. Alessio tells Carolina that his book was inspired by the fact that we are living at a time where climate change is becoming more and more prominent and addressing it is becoming more of a priority. He added that the tipping point that called for the book was the global pandemic that rocked the world in 2020.

In this podcast series commemorating International Youth Day, Jennifer Anya, a renewable energy operations manager at Husk Power Systems, speaks to Power for All’s Aashna Aggarwal on her journey and experiences as a young woman in the sector and the role of youth in championing the clean energy transition.

Young people form a large part of the global population and that’s why it makes sense for them to be part of the climate change solutions, said John Paul Jose, a young climate change and social activist. He joined Power for All’s Matuba Mahlatjie for a special edition of Power for All’s podcast to commemorate International Youth Day.

In this Power for All podcast, Jessica Stephens, the CEO of Africa Minigrid Developers Association (AMDA), in conversation with Power for All CEO Kristina Skierka, reflects on the recently released ‘Benchmarking Africa’s Minigrids report.’ This is a flagship report of AMDA, an industry association created by mini-grid developers to boost the health of the sector and deliver on global renewable energy access objectives.

In this episode of the Power for All podcast, our Africa Communication Director, Matuba Mahlatjie talks with Laura Williamson, who is responsible for directing the membership and institutional partnership work at REN21 on their recently launched Renewables 2022 Global Status Report. Laura notes that while there is the ambition and desire for energy transition, it is not being backed by the necessary action and policies to make that shift happen.

Power for All’s CEO, Kristina Skierka, refers to Ifeoma Malo (affectionately referred to as Ify) as part of “Power for All OG” and that was one of the main reasons she was perfect for an episode reflecting on the organization’s seventh anniversary. Ify was part of Power for All’s infancy as a country manager based in Nigeria back in 2016. She has since gone on to become a game-changer in the renewable energy sector and is now the leader of CleanTech Hub in Nigeria. This is a pioneering hybrid hub for the research, development, demonstration, and incubation of clean and green ideas and technologies in Africa and their validation for commercial-stage development.

In this episode of the Power for All podcast, Kristina Skierka, Founder and CEO of Power for All, speaks with Alice Goodbrook, Innovation Lead for Energy Catalyst on the Energy Catalyst program, which funds private sector innovation and energy access. Energy Catalyst supports the UK and international businesses and organizations to develop highly innovative market-focused energy technologies to enable energy access in Sub-Saharan Africa as well as South East Asia. Alice explains the programme, which started in 2014, has funded about 135 projects involving more than 300 unique organizations engaged in anything that's clean energy, from solar to storage to mini grids to energy efficiency and in 29 countries. She says grant funding programs like Energy Catalyst support technologies and business models that are at very early stages of development for conventional finance, such as investment or a bank loans. Yet they hold massive potential to change lives. “And this is where grant funding really comes into its own, because that allows an organization to try something out without it making or breaking the company. And if their idea does works, it allows them later to access conventional finance,” Alice says. She also adds that the programme has an accelerator side of it to for when the technologies are ready for market. “When your technology is ready for market, the accelerator will help your business grow. So that can be anything from helping with investments, creating a business plan or doing a bit of market research. Whatever your business needs to be able to become market ready,” she explains. Alice adds that collaboration and knowledge are key for the program and the innovators supported by Energy Catalyst have embraced a culture of learning and sharing with the industry. This was important in helping people not to make the same mistakes and to help the industry to progress much quicker. Alice notes that from her many years in the sector, she had come to accept with pride that the community in development and energy access space was much more open and collaborative than in any other fields she’s worked in.

In this episode of the Power for All podcast, Kristina Skierka, Founder and CEO of Power for All, speaks with Prof Dan Kammen, a Professor of Energy at the University of California, Berkeley, with parallel appointments in the Energy and Resources Group. The conversation focuses on how the renewable energy sector has changed over the years and the role of innovations in driving energy access in peri-urban and rural communities, particularly the Pay-As-You-Go (PayGO) model. Dan notes solar energy is now cheaper than fossil fuels. He attributes that partly to scaling up and manufacturing but mostly to figuring out how to work a system that, for a long time and maybe even today, is not bending over backward to accommodate clean energy. “Human connections, thinking about energy access, energy justice, and asking the gender and racial questions of inequality were never on the table as they are now,” he adds. He notes there are still problems in a world that still subsidizes fossil fuels more than investing in renewables but we also have a world of disruptive clean, socially just energy options. Dan notes PayGo is a democratic system that allows the consumers to see what energy costs and to pay for it, as they wish, in small units. He, however, cautions against opportunists who may take advantage of the system.

In this special podcast celebrating inspiring women leaders in renewable energy, we feature Lucia Wamala, Founder and CEO of Bakulu Power. She shares her journey into the DRE sector and the importance of gender equity in energy access.

Our guest in this special episode paying homage to women leaders in the sector is Dr Debra Rowe, the President of the U.S. Partnership for Education for Sustainable Development. Dr Rowe says her career has been dominated by fulfling the need to give people information so that they can move out of energy poverty, and also ensure that they can own their own energy or at the very least, access affordable energy.

In the special episode paying homage to women leaders in the sector, our guest is Emily McAteer, co-founder and CEO at Odyssey Energy Solutions. She says investors are starting to fund women-led projects in the renewable energy sector. McAteer says this is a good sign that things are changing for the better for women in the male-dominated sector. However, efforts to address biases should be intensified.

In this special podcast celebrating inspiring women leaders in renewable energy, we feature Jennye Greene, an expert on energy access. She speaks on her journey into the DRE sector and the importance of gender equity in energy access. Jenny says as the renewable energy sector grows, there has to be deliberate efforts to ensure gender diversity. Conscious choices have to be made to make that happen!

In this podcast episode, Dr. Ghosh, the founder and CEO of Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW), and Power for All CEO, Kristina Skierka continue to dissect our 2022 top trends for energy access.