Why I Talk About Energy Poverty: Education
Perhaps it would be best if I start by defining energy poverty. There is actually some debate among experts on what is to be included in the definition and at what point one can be considered to be experiencing it; but a good, inclusive definition that I have found is this: Energy poverty is not having electricity because it is either not available, not reliable, or not affordable.
Here are a few things you should know about our world. First, about 1.3 billion people in the world are without access to electricity. Secondly, the poorest people are most likely to be affected by energy poverty. Thirdly, these people are more likely to remain poor, because energy poverty stunts the development of a …show more content…
If the choice must be made of what to do with the time before dark - studying or helping with the necesary household duties (or even making sure your family gets to eat), families will choose the latter. That aside, sometimes there simply is not enough time to complete homework or sufficiently study in the hours of daylight left after school (I cannot count the night that I stayed up late into the night to finish homework or study for a test while I was in school). If a family is lucky enough to be able to afford kerosene for a lantern, children’s eyes are red and swollen the next day from the fumes. If they are not able to afford kerosene, often children will travel to urban areas and congregate beneath street lights to study by, sometimes even spending the night there rather than walking for miles home in the dark. Having electricity at home means that these students can not only study more conveniently, but also …show more content…
Imagine you are a young teacher who is just graduating college and looking for a job. You are offered two. At the first job, you will be working in an urban area at a school with all of the desired equipment and resourses like copiers, computers, and internet (not to mention lighting in the classrooms). The second job is for a small rural school up in the mountains. They have no electricity in their community, so not only will you be working in conditions that you are not accustomed to, you will have to change your lifestyle as well, giving up things such as light, refrigeration, and many forms of communication. On top of that, they probably cannot even pay you well. Which school do you choose? The first one, right? Most teachers do. Installing electricity in these schools is the first step to attracting more teachers to these communities.
This is just a brief look at the effects that energy poverty has on education around the world. These are just a few of the reasons why Solar Under the Sun cares and is working with volunteers and communities around the world to install solar energy in the developing world. We are able to help, and we believe that we should. Join
Perhaps it would be best if I start by defining energy poverty. There is actually some debate among experts on what is to be included in the definition and at what point one can be considered to be experiencing it; but a good, inclusive definition that I have found is this: Energy poverty is not having electricity because it is either not available, not reliable, or not affordable.
Here are a few things you should know about our world. First, about 1.3 billion people in the world are without access to electricity. Secondly, the poorest people are most likely to be affected by energy poverty. Thirdly, these people are more likely to remain poor, because energy poverty stunts the development of a …show more content…
If the choice must be made of what to do with the time before dark - studying or helping with the necesary household duties (or even making sure your family gets to eat), families will choose the latter. That aside, sometimes there simply is not enough time to complete homework or sufficiently study in the hours of daylight left after school (I cannot count the night that I stayed up late into the night to finish homework or study for a test while I was in school). If a family is lucky enough to be able to afford kerosene for a lantern, children’s eyes are red and swollen the next day from the fumes. If they are not able to afford kerosene, often children will travel to urban areas and congregate beneath street lights to study by, sometimes even spending the night there rather than walking for miles home in the dark. Having electricity at home means that these students can not only study more conveniently, but also …show more content…
Imagine you are a young teacher who is just graduating college and looking for a job. You are offered two. At the first job, you will be working in an urban area at a school with all of the desired equipment and resourses like copiers, computers, and internet (not to mention lighting in the classrooms). The second job is for a small rural school up in the mountains. They have no electricity in their community, so not only will you be working in conditions that you are not accustomed to, you will have to change your lifestyle as well, giving up things such as light, refrigeration, and many forms of communication. On top of that, they probably cannot even pay you well. Which school do you choose? The first one, right? Most teachers do. Installing electricity in these schools is the first step to attracting more teachers to these communities.
This is just a brief look at the effects that energy poverty has on education around the world. These are just a few of the reasons why Solar Under the Sun cares and is working with volunteers and communities around the world to install solar energy in the developing world. We are able to help, and we believe that we should. Join