Sustainable Development, Climate Change, and Renewable Energy in Rural Central America

Abstract

Decentralized renewable energy (DRE) projects have the potential to contribute to climate change mitigation, climate change adaptation, and sustainable development objectives. DRE systems are considered for emissions reduction or poverty alleviation purposes while their role for climate change adaptation has hardly been analysed. In terms of adaptation, DRE provides electricity that can be used both to prepare for and recover from disasters, and to provide additional income and livelihood opportunities, thus reducing dependency on natural resources. For example, DRE can power early warning systems, telecommunication systems, health clinics and potable water systems. Although it might be said that climate change adaptation applications of DRE systems have already been implemented, the vulnerability of these systems towards climate impacts, and the robustness of these systems to climatic impacts are oftentimes not even considered.The assessment of 15 community-owned renewable energy projects in Guatemala and Nicaragua show that, under certain conditions, renewable energy projects can simultaneously meet the triple objective of sustainable development and climate change mitigation and adaptation. Research also points to specific drivers which can facilitate or hinder projects meeting their own stated objectives and, consequently, the triple objective, and their long-term functioning. These drivers include the specific background of the beneficiary community, the financing and implementing entities and the local governance structures in place.

Evaluating the Use of Renewable Energy and Communal Governance Systems for Climate Change Adaptation

“…Even during the first phase of the study, the community planned to connect to the national electric grid when available. The hydro facility would be kept as a backup for grid electricity in case of disruptions due to extreme weather events (Ley 2013), which were evidently not factored in the community's decisions to abandon the RE projects as observed in the second phase of the study. Thus, community decision-making was seen to be dominated by "short-termism," a lack of awareness of or low value ascribed to the multiple benefits of the RE systems (e.g.…”

“…Investing in and implementing community-based renewable energy systems has been identified as a key solution to climate change as well as meeting Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) (IRENA 2019, Ley 2017, Madriz-Vargas et al 2018. While contributions of RE interventions for climate mitigation (through emissions reduction) and sustainable development (through improved energy access, poverty reduction, and cascading effects on education and quality of life) have been widely assessed, implications for climate change adaptation have received relatively less attention (Ley 2017, Venema andRehman 2007).…”

“…While contributions of RE interventions for climate mitigation (through emissions reduction) and sustainable development (through improved energy access, poverty reduction, and cascading effects on education and quality of life) have been widely assessed, implications for climate change adaptation have received relatively less attention (Ley 2017, Venema andRehman 2007). More recently, empirical evidence on the role of RE for adaptation is growing: for example, decentralized RE can facilitate disaster recovery by provision of electricity (Ley 2017), RE generation in communities can support local services such as health and water facilities, telecommunication, and enable livelihood diversification (Madriz-Vargas et al 2018). What is less understood is how RE performance is mediated by local institutions and power dynamics and the implications of these governance structures and processes on adaptation to climate change.…”

The impact of climate change on electricity demand in Australia

“…43 Renewable energy has an important role to play in climate change adaptation, mitigation, and sustainable development. 44,45 Thus, it is important to examine the advent of new technologies with improved energy efficiency for cooling and heating because these may alter electricity demand forecasts. Consumers’ responses to electricity price changes under climate change conditions have also not been well researched in the literature.…”

Mainstreaming climate adaptation into sectoral policies in Central Africa: Insights from Cameroun

“…This policy is intended to encourage the importation of renewable energy equipment as part of the national energy policy and strategic action plan aimed at increasing the resilience of Cameroun's energy sector to climate change and variability (MINEE, 2006). Renewable energy can enhance climate change adaptation by providing energy to power early warning systems, telecommunication systems, health clinics and portable water systems in rural areas (Ley, 2017). ARSEL, 2017).…”