WHAT WE CAN DO​

Governments have the highest potential when it comes to speedily ending energy poverty. The lack of access to grid-connected power is one of the main causes of energy poverty. Hence the fastest way to reduce a majority of people suffering from energy poverty would be to speed up the process of global electrification, or in other words, the improvement in ways to access to electricity.

But as explained earlier, simply increasing the access to electricity will not solve the entire crisis. Increasing dependency on fossil-fuels only makes the source more expensive and scarce, while also damaging the environment and ecological systems. To successfully combat energy poverty, governments could do many things in addition to improving access to electricity, as explained further below.

An effective method of speeding up renewable energy developments would be to allow private sector participation in the industry. Once this is allowed, tax cuts on equipment, attractive feed-in rates, and other advantages could be provided to attract developments in specific resources that have the necessary potential.

Governments could also support the developments of greener buildings using energy efficient designs. This could also be done by providing tax cuts on construction material, tax cuts on any revenues, or cheaper power rates, or any other advantages depending on the type of building.

The California Academy of Sciences, San Francisco, California is a sustainable building designed by Renzo Piano. Source: Wikimedia Commons/Public Domain