Clean energy: Nigeria's move away from diesel generators

The residents of Etteln, Germany responded to rural decline and digital exclusion by organizing grassroots collective action—including volunteer-led fiber-optic installation and community-driven digital innovations—which reversed population loss, doubled school enrollment, earned global recognition as the world's smartest city, and created a replicable model now used by 500+ cities worldwide.

PowerHive’s solar microgrid project provides electricity to those living in remote areas where power isn’t easily accessible. Since starting five years ago, the project has benefitted 1,500 households and has also led to a decrease in violence as nighttime robberies and attacks are less common when houses in the community are lit.

In partnership with local communities, a non-government organization’s solar-powered instant milk chillers are refrigerating locals' camel milk to keep it from spoiling in the extreme temperatures of India’s Thar Desert. The refrigeration systems store up to 1,500 liters of milk and are helping to increase household incomes.

A collaborative partnership among local and national organizations made it possible to install solar panels on 10 Greensboro homes for free. Because of this effort, many low-income families have seen a significant decrease in their energy bills and an increase in value of their homes. Although convincing people to install the panels was a challenge, organizers are now figuring out how to scale the initiative and make it sustainable in the longterm.

The Connecticut Green Bank's Solar MAP+ program acts as a "public developer" that bundles, finances, and directly develops solar projects for schools and municipalities that private developers avoid. To date, they've installed nearly 54 megawatts of solar, programmed to save $57 million in energy costs.

In Nigeria, nearly half of the population doesn’t have access to electricity grids, making solar a cheap and versatile option to bring affordable, reliable and eco-friendly power to millions. The country is using solar mini-grids, small installations that produce up to 10 megawatts of electricity. Nearly 120 mini-grids are now installed, powering about 50,000 households and reaching about 250,000 people.

A community solar project in a rural Michigan town is making energy more affordable for low-to-moderate-income households. Fifty community members and organizations subscribed to receive energy from and support the construction of a solar array. As a result, their electricity bills are about $300 cheaper each year, and the local utility reported fewer late payments.

The addition of solar power mini-grids provides electricity to 50 houses in the village, making it possible for residents to monitor their homes for snakes — something that’s impossible to do without light — and prevent fatal snake bites. The 50 mini-grids were provided for free and since their installation in February 2023, the village hasn’t reported a single snake bite case.

Thanks to a government-funded electrification project, Modhera is the first solar-powered village in India, and as a result, nearly all of the residents pay nothing for electricity. Instead, they earn money from selling unused power back to the grid.

The Red Cloud smart city project is greatly improving local residents’ quality of life and leading to reduced crime rates in the city. The project installed new LED streetlights with AI-enabled overhead cameras, Wi-Fi access in homes that didn’t have access previously, as well as air quality monitoring devices. Since the new improvements were made, morale in the city has significantly improved and there are plans in place to scale the program and improve neighboring cities, as well.