Introduction to Ecological Dimensions of Global Energy Poverty

Globally, 1.6 billion people, 16% of the world’s population, lack access to electricity and more than three billion people rely on traditional fuels such as wood, dung, agricultural waste, or charcoal, to meet everyday domestic needs (IEA 2010). This condition of energy poverty constrains multiple aspects of human development and growth. Women and children must spend time, often hours, collecting wood-fuel instead of investing time in other productive pursuits, such as attending school or producing value-added commodities for sale or trade. When fuel is in short supply, water is not boiled to kill pathogens, contributing to debilitating ill-health, and mortality of infants. Smoke from indoor combustion of biomass fuels contributes to acute respiratory infections and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, which kills an estimated two million people a year, mostly young children and women (World Bank 2006). The collection of these traditional fuels puts additional stresses on forest and agricultural ecosystems, undermining rural livelihoods over the long term. Trees are cut for wood-fuel, forests are cleared for charcoal production, and agricultural residues are burned instead of returning nutrients to the soil. While the energy poor are predominantly concentrated in rural areas, access to electricity in urban and peri-urban areas of developing countries is often limited to wealthier communities, forcing the poor to go without or pay comparatively higher prices for domestic fuels. Billions of dollars worth of energy subsidies are rarely targeted to benefit the poor.