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Yemen's ‘microgrid girls' power community amid war and COVID-19

Veronique Mistiaen

October 18, 2020 |

Al Jazeera |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: Yemen, Abs

A solar-grid station is powering rural Yemeni communities on the front-line of the war and in the midst of COVID-19, while also empowering women who typically have very few professional opportunities. The microgrid project supplies the community with affordable and clean energy, replacing expensive diesel generators which are bad for the environment. Electricity bills have been cut by 65 percent, an impressive gain in one of the world's poorest country. Thousands of entrepreneurs have generated income based on the new electricity source and many more have benefitted from new services and products available.

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‘Energy Aggregation' Has the Potential to Transform How We Get Power, But Hurdles Remain

Chad Small

October 14, 2020 |

Next City |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, California

California communities are turning to “community choice aggregators,” which allows them to buy electricity from green providers and have more control over the energy grid. However, the financial pressure for these programs to offer competitive rates as public utilities can mean that the programs might increase their dependence on cheaper, less green energy sources. So far, 21 of these community-choice programs are in the Golden State, serving 10 million customers.

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Smart Tourism

JoAnna Haugen

October 07, 2020 |

Stanford Social Innovation Review |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: Nepal

Tourists can travel to remote destinations in the Himalayas and help install solar technology in villages where residents live without electricity. GHE has used funds from the tourism component to electrify 100 villages which increased the quality of life for residents and resulted in an opportunity for tourism where one did not exist before. As a result of the electrification, a community tourism initiative allowed for tourists to stay with villagers and provided an addition source of income. The economic stimulus from tourism gave native youth a reason to stay in their villages instead of migrating.

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Locals Question the Relevance of First Solar Power Plant in Soroti

Noah Omuya

October 03, 2020 |

Aica |

Photojournalism |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: Uganda, Soroti

Four years later after a solar grid was installed in Uganda, residents of nearby villages are wondering when they will get some of that power. The 10-megawatt facility, which cost $19 million to build, was expected to provide electricity to about 40,000 homes, schools, and businesses in the area. However, almost all households in the 10 surrounding villages still use firewood for cooking. The lessons learned from this renewable energy project could help inform others as the country looks to power more parts of the country with solar panels.

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In Slumping Energy States, Plugging Abandoned Wells Could Provide an Economic Boost

Erika Bolstad

September 23, 2020 |

Stateline |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Watford City, North Dakota

North Dakota is using some of its COVID-19 pandemic relief funds to plug 239 abandoned oil wells and reclaim 2,000 acres of lands. Abandoned wells can contaminate groundwater and leak methane that is hazardous to human health and contributes to climate change. While not everyone agrees that the funds should be used to plug wells, state officials say the economic relief program is keeping about 600 oilfield workers employed.

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Bitcoin Miner Is Scoring 700% Profits Selling Energy to Grid

Chris Martin

September 01, 2020 |

Bloomberg |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Texas

A cryptocurrency mining company in Texas called Layer1 can power down its data-processing centers and sell its unused electricity back to the power grid. Instead of passively consuming energy, they are able to utilize batteries, smart meters, and artificial intelligence software to use more renewable energy and, at the same time, make a profit. While scaling this response can be difficult due to restrictions from utility companies on how consumers get their energy, Layer1 estimates it will save up to $6.7 million annually by cutting production for 30 minutes during some of the hottest days in the summer.

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Can we harness the Arctic's methane for energy?

Amy Yee

September 01, 2020 |

Arctic Today |

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Under 800 Words

Response Location: Rwanda

Alternative energy systems in Africa could help inform how to trap methane in the Arctic. Due to permafrost thawing and glaciers melting, methane, a greenhouse gas that contributes to climate change, is leaking into the atmosphere. In Rwanda, a lake-based methane power plant extracts methane from the water and turns it into electricity. But questions remain about how similar systems and infrastructure could work in the Arctic landscape.

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How Montana Is Cleaning Up Abandoned Oil Wells

Ray Levy Uyeda

August 13, 2020 |

Yes! Magazine |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Montana

Abandoned oil wells in Montana leak thousands of metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions every year, so the Well Done Foundation is working to plug up those wells. In about a year, the foundation plugged its first three wells and expanded their program to other states. The data on the state of abandoned wells and its emissions isn’t complete, which makes it difficult to know the full extent of the problem. But, “what’s exciting about this is that we can make an impact one well at a time,” says Curtis Shuck, founder of the foundation.

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The ‘solar canals' making smart use of India's space

Kalpana Sunder

August 03, 2020 |

BBC |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: India, Gujarat

Covering canals with solar panels has allowed Indian communities to save land, water and carbon emissions, and even bring electricity to rural villages. The solar panels are suspended on metal structures over the canal, which can generate electricity for farmers and be fed into the state grid or sold to public utilities. While these canal-top solar power plants can be expensive to build, so far, eight Indian states have commissioned canal solar projects.

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Blockchain technology to boost power access in rural areas

Faustine Ngila

July 14, 2020 |

Nation Africa |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: Kenya

A micro-grid system has been paired with blockchain technology to easily sell and buy affordable and clean energy in rural Kenya. Residents living in the countryside don't generally have access to reliable and affordable electricity but this new technology allows rural Kenyans to install solar panels on their homes and easily sell surplus electricity to neighbors. The pilot program is a result of a collaboration between an NGO and a local tech company.

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