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A Jobs Tale: Recruiting Workers for Husk Power
We were there to recruit electricians and linemen for our operations team. These men would be trained via Husk Power University and then sent to the field to assist especially in preparation for the upcoming monsoon months. Husk invests a lot in its employees, so it is important that we not only attract, but more importantly, retain talent once they are trained.
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Achieving Green and Inclusive Markets Through Public-Private Collaboration: A Bright Spot at Rio
In the midst of the shortcomings of the recent Rio+20 Earth Summit, there were bright spots that offered hope that a sustainable future is possible.
One of these was a half-day session at the Rio+20 Corporate Sustainability Forum called, “Enabling green and inclusive markets – a case for public-private collaboration.” A joint initiative of the Donor Committee for Enterprise Development and the United Nations Global Compact, in collaboration with WRI’s New Ventures initiative, the session offered a glimpse of how “green” and “inclusive” markets can flourish as a result of the collaborative efforts of entrepreneurs, governments, civil society, and bilateral and multilateral donors.- Categories
- Energy, Environment
- Tags
- renewable energy
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Power to More People
Africa may be about to get a whole lot more power.For years, nonprofits have worked to make lighting available and affordable to Africans who aren't connected to a power grid. But they've managed to help only a tiny percentage of that population, mainly by selling them inexpensive kerosene lamps.
- Categories
- Energy, Environment
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
- Tags
- solar
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What the SOCCKET is (And What it is Not)
It looks like the prototype do-gooder-gimmick – a football (soccer ball) that produces and stores electricity, which can power a solar lantern at night. Each ball financed by Western backers, they are donated in developing countries. I had the chance to kick it at the Rio Summit – it’s a fun concept, but does it hold up to its promise?
- Categories
- Energy, Technology
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Is A Clean Energy Access Market Finally Emerging ?
The fact that the poor are willing to pay for clean energy has been known for some time. The WRI-New Ventures Power to the People had estimated the Indian market for clean energy at about USD 2 billion a year. The IFC(W) report From Gap to Opportunity that estimates the total worldwide spend of the poor at about USD 37 billion on poor-quality energy solutions.
- Categories
- Energy
- Tags
- renewable energy
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Low-Cost Solar Brightens Lives in the Developing World
A decade ago, Katherine Lucey oversaw a heavily subsidized $1,500 solar-light installation in the rural district of Mpigi in central Uganda. The 60-watt rooftop solar panel system could power three lights in the four-room, off-the-grid house.
- Categories
- Energy, Environment
- Tags
- solar
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Weekly Roundup: Extending Customer Credit – the Way to Scale?
This week we received the exciting news that VisonSpring has sold more than one million pairs affordable eyeglasses customers living at the Base of the Pyramid. But for every VisionSpring, surely there are countless other social startups that have failed to reach scale, and not necessarily because they are marketing an inferior product. It might be because their customers cannot reasonably afford to make a purchase, even one as “small” as $10. This is the need identified by Invested Development, which announced the creation of the Impact Factoring Fund, (IFF) that looks to provide short-term liquidity and working capital to early stage, high-growth companies in emerging markets.
- Categories
- Energy
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A Day at Husk Power University
Acumen Fund invested in Husk Power Systems (HPS) in 2010 to help scale their innovative business model of using discarded rice husks as a source for rural off-grid electricity generation. HPS has since expanded to over 90 plants all over Bihar, India, and has launched Husk Power University (HPU), a technical training institute for future mechanics and operators for HPS. I spent a day there.
- Categories
- Education, Energy, Environment
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