Energy Poverty

Energy poverty remains a challenged concept without firm establishment in public policy on a national and international level. This paper addresses those still skeptical about the very idea of energy poverty and provides arguments to defend the concept against fundamental criticism. First, it is shown why energy poverty should be conceptualized, measured and tackled as a specific form of poverty. Secondly, conceptual confusions surrounding the concept are clarified, in particular the relation to fuel poverty and the difference between energy poverty definitions, measures and indicators. Further, a needs-based understanding of energy poverty is outlined.

Insufficient access to affordable, safe and reliable energy services deprives individuals of the essential means to live a good, satisfactory and just life. This problem is becoming more and more urgent in urban areas, in particular in low-income neighborhoods, in which the inability to meet energy costs reflects social segregation and distributional inequalities. Making cleaner technologies available for all homes and providing financial aid are strategies that would combat energy poverty. However, understanding people's everyday decisions that affect their energy use is also crucial. A careful examination of the underlying mechanisms that drive decisions is required, above all in contexts characterized by conditions of scarcity. Living in a context of scarcity depletes people's available cognitive resources, thus rendering their decisions more susceptible to cognitive biases. As an example, contexts of scarcity trigger a tendency to prefer immediate smaller rewards to delayed larger ones. However, studies demonstrate that this can be mitigated by allowing individuals to build community trust. This study taps into recent findings from behavioral sciences regarding the role that scarcity conditions have on decision-making, with the aim to (i) review certain cognitive biases that might arise in energy poverty contexts, and (ii) devise strategies to unlock individuals' potential to make decisions that result in better outcomes for themselves and their surroundings.

Στο άρθρο αυτό παρουσιάζεται μια πρόσφατη προσπάθεια μελέτης των επιπτώσεων από την αύξηση των τιμών της ενέργειας στην αναπτυξιακή δυναμική των περιφερειών της Ευρώπης που έγινε στα πλαίσια του προγράμματος ESPON- ReRisk (Regions at Risk of Energy Poverty).
Ο στόχος του προγράμματος ReRisk, είναι ο καθορισμός των περισσότερο ευάλωτων αναπτυξιακά περιφερειών της Ευρώπης. Για τη διερεύνηση του αναπτυξιακού προφίλ των περιφερειών της Ευρώπης, πραγματοποιείται η ταξινόμηση των περιφερειών της Ευρώπης με βάση μια σειρά από κριτήρια που αφορούν το περιεχόμενο του στόχου του προγράμματος ReRisk. Η παρούσα εργασία παρουσιάζει τη μεθοδολογία που υιοθετήθηκε στο πρόγραμμα ReRisk για την ταξινόμηση των περιφερειών της Ευρώπης σε ομάδες με ομοιογενή χαρακτηριστικά έτσι ώστε η έμφαση στα πακέτα πολιτικής της Ευρωπαϊκής Ένωσης να
διαμορφώνεται με βάση τα αναπτυξιακά χαρακτηριστικά της κάθε ομάδας.

Even though energy poverty alleviation and climate change mitigation are inextricably linked policy goals, they have remained as relatively disconnected fields of research inquiry and policy development. Acknowledging this gap, this paper explores the mainstream academic and policy literatures to provide a taxonomy of interactions and identify synergies and trade-offs between them. The most important trade-off identified is the potential increase in energy poverty levels as a result of strong climate change action if the internalisation of the external costs of carbon emissions is not offset by efficiency gains. The most significant synergy was found in deep energy efficiency in buildings. The paper argues that neither of the two problems – deep reductions in GHG emissions by mid-century, and energy poverty eradication – is likely to be solved fully on their own merit, while joining the two policy goals may provide a very solid case for deep efficiency improvements. Thus, the paper calls for a strong integration of these two policy goals (plus other key related benefits like energy security or employment), in order to provide sufficient policy motivation to mobilise a wide-scale implementation of deep energy efficiency standards.

This study uses data on residential energy consumption from large nation-wide surveys in 1990, 1997, 2005, and 2015 to assess the racial inequality in residential energy consumption. The results indicate that the overall inequality in energy consumption/cost varies little over the past 25 years while showing widespread energy poverty in the U.S. In terms of racial differences, African-American households are more vulnerable than white and Asian households, and about one-third of them lived in energy poverty by 2015. However, the share of households in energy poverty witnessed the greatest growth among white households during 1990-2015. In addition, the energy burdens of different racial groups vary greatly with respect to energy types, end-use demands , and regions, given the differences in climate and households' socioeconomic characteristics. The study suggests that besides low-income African-American households, urgent attention should be given to the increasing number of white households in energy poverty.

The thesis explores the BFAST Monitor time series analysis method and its application to land surface temperature data for Greece. The land surface temperature data used acquired form the MODIS satellite, the time frame of the thesis was from 2008 to 2018, while the National Gross Domestic Product for the year 2011 was also obtained, based on which the poverty indicators S80/S20, the Headcount Index, the deciles and finally the LISA local spatial autocorrelation index were calculated. Poverty indicators showed that poverty, in its absolute sense, was concentrated in the central and northern parts of the country and concerned prefectures with an income of less than 60% of national median income. The aim of the poverty indicators and the LISA indicator was to used as a guide towards a more targeted use of the BFAST Monitor algorithm, ie to investigate any changes in the time series in those geographic areas. Finally, the BFAST Monitor algorithm, although at cell level detected a change in the time series, did not manage to be implemented at a spatial level. The method can analyze satellite land-surface temperature time-series on a local scale as it is fast, does not depend on thresholds and is not affected by gaps in the time series. While the method used is suitable for monitoring national poverty, the use of data with greater spatial resolution is required to be used at the national level.

The debate on distributed energy systems is evolving in a way that enlarges the domain of traditional energy policy, especially regarding urban and regional development priorities and community engagement aspects. The present article discusses on the possibility to adopt Community Energy Enterprises as a specific organizational model that may represent a crucial and not yet explored tool to enhance the diffusion of a distributed energy geography, promoting new approaches for community-based energy systems. The crucial issue here is that in the discussion of the current energy system we may refer not only to production unit, but also to ownership, decision-making and local responsibility as regards new forms of provision, infrastructures and organizations. With these objectives, the paper discusses in a multi-scalar perspective the role of these organizations may innovate the governance of the current energy market, as part of a bottom-up based socio-material transition in the energy market: mobilizing local factors, institutions and approaches in users and citizens' engagement.

Despite the fact that there were studies that show that improving energy access contributes to poverty alleviation, there have only been a few studies here in the Philippines that look at the status of energy poverty. To this, we aim to introduce energy poverty in a multidimensional approach. Through this approach, a more in-depth and targeted way can be made in order to assess the situation and solve the problem at hand. We used the Household Energy Consumption Survey (HECS) of 2004 and 2011 which has sufficient sample households to represent the Philippines. Data from HECS include levels and patterns of energy consumption such as electricity access, usage of modern energy sources, and ownership of recreational appliances. We adapted the Alkire- Foster methodology in construction of the Multidimensional Energy Poverty Index (MEPI), which captures both the incidence and intensity of energy poverty, to assess the extent of energy poverty in the Philippines. Using this method, the results show that MEPI exhibits a significant reduction from 0.611 to 0.552 in 2004 to 2011 as fueled by a large decrease both in the headcount and intensity ratio. Moreover, the population of the MEPI-poor is heavily concentrated in the rural areas and the Mindanao region particularly in ARMM, Zamboanga Peninsula, and SOCCSKSARGEN where the use of traditional fuels for cooking is prevalent.

Almost 50 million EU citizens are affected by energy poverty, which is generally defined as
inadequate use of domestic energy services. However, while extensive research has been
conducted on the implications that some dimensions of energy poverty, such as high energy
costs and cold homes have on households in the EU, very little is known about this in the
context of Norway. Norway is one of the most income-equal countries in the world as well as
a country with historically low electricity prices. Despite this however, if some Norwegian
households continue to live in energy poverty, they may endure the double trauma of being
energy poor while not being recognized as such. The aim of this qualitative study is to explore
how Norwegian households experience, cope and make changes in response to energy
poverty, from changing their use of energy services to maintaining social relations and a
preferred lifestyle. The main research question guiding the thesis is: how do vulnerable
households in Norway experience energy poverty in everyday life? The data material for the
study was collected through semi-structured interviews conducted with 18 members from 17
households experiencing energy poverty. The interviewees were recruited using a variation of
recruitment approaches, such as gatekeepers, snowballing and hand-picking cases. Findings
are analyzed and discussed drawing on concepts from practice theory. The study finds that
lack of financial independence, social capital in the form of family, social and material
dimensions to housing and energy consumption as well as normative expectations of energy
use have implications for how energy poverty is experienced by households. Most
interviewees have little perceived agency to ameliorate their situation. A group of younger
interviewees feel marginalized having to limit energy use extensively, cut food costs, rely on
financial support from parents and isolate themselves to pay high energy costs in the colder
months. They feel unable to live “normal” lives and struggle with feelings of shame,
embarrassment, and stigma. A group of older interviewees are less vulnerable having more
stable sources of income, drawing on cheap or free firewood as well as having stronger social
capital in the form of their children. This group primarily struggles with maintaining an
adequate indoor temperature and rarely mentions making sacrifices in other areas. Rather,
these interviewees express having learned to live within the boundaries of their financial
means and having found strength in careful management of their financial means.

Energy poverty remains a challenge for households unable to access modern energy services in Mogadishu, with reliance on biomass for the fulfilment of basic needs having grave impacts on user health and Somalia’s scarce forestry. With the legacy of civil war transforming the nature of the city’s energy system, this paper finds that state building continues to provide opportunities and obstacles for urban energy transitions in Mogadishu. Yet as the Federal Government of Somalia pursues a process of federalisation, the lack of settlements with charcoal beneficiaries to regulate production may undermine prospects for inter-fuel substitution amongst biomass users. Within the capital, emerging pockets of social order are facilitating improvements in modern energy infrastructure, but amidst an ungoverned energy sector, markets failures continue to inhibit prospects for lower income residents to utilise modern energy services. State-building efforts by the FGS in Mogadishu have yet to translate into the legitimization of its fiscal authority, undermining the pursuit of initiatives that can smoothen the pathway for charcoal-dependant households to climb up the energy ladder. Whilst the National Development Plan aims to address these institutional deficits, its potential to contribute to energy transitions is contingent on the formation of legitimate political settlements between stakeholders in Mogadishu.

This study is aimed at examining households’ energy demand and energy use patterns in urban Ethiopia. The energy use pattern of the country indicates predominance of traditional energy which has implications for environment, sustainability and human health. Indoor air pollution, deforestation, climate change and loss of soil fertility are some of the social, economic and environmental impacts of biomass energy use. Such energy use pattern is to a large extent the characteristic of less developed countries in general and Ethiopia in particular. This puts under question the development efforts of the nation and thus urges for immediate policy measures to ameliorate the situation. We estimated energy demand in urban Ethiopia using an Almost Ideal Demand Model and secondary data from Central Statistical Agency of Ethiopia. The model was estimated as a system of demand and
the estimates were constrained to comply with neoclassical theoretical restrictions on
demand. The study indicated that at regional level there is immense disparity in energy use
patters. While the estimated expenditure elasticities of demand show all fuel types are necessities for urban households in Ethiopia, demand for almost all fuel types was found to be price inelastic. Fuelwood and electricity were found to be substitutes and highly responsive to own price. Similarly charcoal and kerosene were found to be substitutes. The study concluded that any planning at the country level associated with energy use should take variation across regions into account. Further the study indicated the existence of a room of intervention. To change the energy use pattern policy makers can make use of the estimated elasticities and especially manipulate price of modern energy sources (kerosene and electricity). Further the study contributes in the area of empirical energy demand analysis.

This chapter looks at poverty from a perspective which argues that the conscious and deliberate perpetuation of poverty is a form of fundamentalism with its associated principles and values. There are people who are parasitic and are incessantly feeding off and on the sweat of the 'povertised' of society. The chapter explores how poverty prevents the fulfilment and enjoyment of human rights and results in the deferral and postponement, abandonment and foregoing of the destination of people as happiness, freedom, self-and collective affirmation, and self-actualisation. It explains why poverty, as a form of fundamentalism, affects many Africans relative to other groups from different continents. Furthermore, it explores the ways in which what I call appropriates are complicit in the perpetuation of poverty and the fundamentalism associated with it. It also examines how the measurement of poverty speaks to the 'fundamentalisation' of poverty. This is evident in the manner in which poverty statistics are derived and interpreted to express the primacy of the exclusivity of the rich and a system of neoliberalism in which the 'trickle-down effect' – a hollow hypothesis-that should benefit the so-called poor has yet to materialise for inclusivity. The first part of this chapter discusses the povertisation of the masses through the processes of appropriation. The term 'povertised' is deliberately used to show that the povertisation of the masses is a deliberate outcome of a process of making people poor – a form of poverty production. Poverty is neither accidental nor inevitable. Povertisation gives this notion the elements of a process as opposed to being an event; it systematises poverty, and makes it

Energy is central to driving not only productivity in the broader economy, but has a fundamental role for enabling minimum living standards in the residential sector through the energy services provided. These energy services are crucial to ensure warm homes, provide water supply and cooking, lighting, refrigeration and the operation of other electrical appliances. However, some households across all Member States are increasingly struggling to meet their basic energy needs due to energy prices increasing faster than household budgets, poorly insulated buildings and inefficient household appliances leading to higher energy bills. Estimates based on proxy indicators suggest 10-25% of the European population could already be affected by energy poverty to some extent. Given the rising income inequality across Europe and the associated costs of the energy transition, the share of households experiencing energy poverty is likely to increase. Energy poverty is gaining visibility in European legislation, as is the need to protect vulnerable consumers in the gas and electricity markets. The transition to a liberalised retail market for electricity and gas means that the market system increasingly rules the way retailers and consumers interact with each other, as the use of market distorting measures such as regulated prices or energy subsidies to households are removed. While this should increase opportunity for consumers to find the best deal to suit their needs, some households will need additional protection in such a market. Therefore, protective mechanisms are vital to enabling vulnerable energy consumers to access the full benefits of the market, which may not be otherwise available due to issues such as energy affordability. With over 17% of the European population at risk of poverty and 10% in arrears on utility accounts in 2014, this points towards the need to reevaluate the measures in place to safeguard lower income and other vulnerable households given increasing liberalisation under the Internal Energy Market. The objective of this report was to appraise measures associated with ensuring vulnerable consumers are able to afford and maintain a connection to electricity and gas with a particular view of supporting the European Commission’s directorate of Internal Energy Market in assessing which legislative support can be provided across the European Union in the revision of the electricity and gas Directives of the Third Energy Package. This report specifically fed into the impact assessment for the revisions reflected in the European Commission’s proposal for a Clean Energy Package. Firstly, we reviewed how different Member States have implemented specific protection measures (financial transfers, disconnection safeguards and social tariffs). Following this review, an economic assessment compared existing and alternative schemes for the implementation of protective measures across the EU. Finally, recommendations were made regarding the types of measures that provide minimum protection standards for vulnerable consumers in the energy sector.

Aside dedicated generation, transmission and distribution networks, the hype around corporations and other entities purchasing so called clean energy may be considered a deliberate accounting misrepresentation. To illustrate this case in this short perspective, we begin by explaining the technical difficulties of remaining " renewables pure ". We then give case studies of two organisations – Apple Inc. and Google LLC – who are, arguably, at fault of making such claims. The method is a simple, non-systematic comparison between what is technically possible, and what is claimed to be possible. Given that incongruous renewables claims have the potential to further impoverish vulnerable households who must bear the financial costs of renewables integration, we conclude that a successful decarbonisation pathway must not have selective winners or losers.

Nearly 3 billion people in Asia, Africa, and Latin America (the Energy Poor) face daily hardships due to lack of modern energy for cooking, heating, sanitation, lighting, transportation, and basic mechanical power.  Despite their minimal greenhouse gas emissions, the Energy Poor will be disproportionately burdened by  the floods, droughts, rising sea levels, and other disturbances caused by climate change.  Although climate change has been framed as an issue of climate debt and climate justice, the plight of the Energy Poor has received short shrift in the climate change negotiations. Will efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions consign the Energy Poor to perpetual deprivation? 
This chapter argues that the climate change negotiations represent a unique opportunity for affluent countries to mitigate climate change, repay the climate debt, and foster climate justice and energy justice by financing the provision of clean renewable energy to the Energy Poor. The black carbon emitted in the burning of biomass by the Energy Poor results in millions of deaths per year due to indoor air pollution (primarily among women and children), and constitutes the second most significant contributor to climate change after carbon dioxide. Dependence on biomass for energy also ravages local ecosystems and accelerates deforestation.  The cost of reducing black carbon emissions is minimal relative to other greenhouse gases, and the benefits are enormous because black carbon is a highly potent greenhouse gas that dissipates in as little as one week if emissions cease.  Financing the provision of clean, renewable energy to the world’s Energy Poor will enhance their well-being, fulfill their human rights, produce an immediate decline in black carbon, and promote low-emission alternatives to the dominant fossil-fuel based development paradigm.
A justice-centered approach to climate change and energy poverty should recognize the right to energy as an emerging human right and prioritize the provision of appropriate sustainable energy technologies (ASETs) to the Energy Poor, including decentralized electricity generating systems based on solar, wind, and local biodiesel; efficient cookstoves; and solar thermal heating.  Decentralized renewable energy will enable the Energy Poor to bypass existing fossil fuel-based  energy systems that are cumbersome, expensive, polluting, and vulnerable to capture by national elites.  Financing the provision of ASETs to the Energy Poor can therefore foster democratic  local control of energy production in addition to mitigating climate change, protecting local ecosystems, fulfilling human rights, and hastening the transition to sustainable energy.

The global move to tackle climate change as envisaged in the 2015 Paris Agreement has necessitated debates and action geared towards transitioning to a low carbon economy. Although there is no agreed international definition of energy transition, the focus has been put to a shift from fossil fuels to renewables. This paper is intended to contribute to the global debate on energy transition with a focus on the initiatives taking place in a few selected countries. The argument in this paper is to the effect that many developing countries still need fossil fuels to tackle energy access challenges and ensure economic growth. Nevertheless, this does not in any way mean that these countries are climate change deniers. In this respect, the question to be addressed in this article is how can we measure energy transition efforts in developing countries? In responding to this question, the article attempts to develop and analyse some key energy transition indicators.

With myriads of policy options being considered to alleviate energy poverty, the financial inclusion-energy poverty nexus has received little attention despite its potential. Using two rounds of living standards survey data from Ghana, this study examines the effect of financial inclusion on energy poverty using multidimensional measures. Endogeneity associated with financial inclusion is instrumented using distance to the nearest bank. We found that the share of energy poor households in Ghana reduced slightly from about 81% to 80% between 2012/13 and 2016/17. Our estimates show that a standard deviation increase in financial inclusion is associated with a decrease in household energy poverty between 1.380 and 1.556 standard deviations. This outcome is consistent across different quasi-experimental methods. The results show more consistency for rural and male-headed households. Improvement in financial inclusion is likely to result in the biggest reduction in energy poverty for those in the employee category. We identify consumption poverty and household net income as potential channels through which financial inclusion influences energy poverty.

Los autores abordan diferentes aspectos de la transición energética en México desde una perspectiva interdisciplinaria. 
La publicación comienza por discutir los co-beneficios y retos para una transición energética sustentable en el contexto de los Objetivos de Desarrollo Sustentable. A través de los capítulos, los autores discuten:  1) Los retos del desarrollo energético en América Latina 2) Derechos humanos y responsabilidad empresarial en el sector energético 3) Retos para el crecimiento económico sustentable en México y la paradoja de la abundancia 4) Energía y carbono en el consumo de los hogares mexicanos 5) Ampliando el concepto de pobreza energética desde una perspectiva de necesidades humanas fundamentales 6) Evolución regulatoria del sector energético en México y 7) La consulta previa en México y la gobernanza global del desarrollo.

Transición energética; Objetivos de Desarrollo Sustentable; co-beneficios; pobreza energética; desarrollo; consumo de hogares; necesidades humanas fundamentales, gobernanza, derechos humanos; extractivismo; regulación energética; Consulta pública; Responsabilidad Corporativa, inter-disciplinario; México

The aim of this article is to evaluate the impact of rural electrification on the reduction of energy poverty in Brazil through the analysis of 23,000 rural domiciles or rural properties between the years 2000 and 2004. The results indicate a fast change in the profile of energy consumption and a reduction of energy poverty. This new approach works as a complement, among other variables, to analyze and quantify the real economic, social and energy impacts in rural electrification programs, generally applied in developing countries

Energy poverty – or the condition of households that cannot adequately heat their homes -- is produced at the confluence of multi-scalar processes, from regional labor market restructuring, to urban disinvestment, to geopolitical and geoeconomic struggles over extraction. Critical theorization of the concept is in its nascent phase and the notion itself has received relatively little attention in the United States.  Our paper aims to address these lacunae by mobilizing an urban political ecology framework to consider a community-based campaign that targeted residential energy conservation funds in Buffalo, New York. We analyze how the community campaign drew upon the “network crisis” of the energy-poor home to frame critical justice demands that foregrounded energy poverty as the product of uneven socionatural development.  Through spatial claims and scalar strategies, the campaign highlighted the contribution of neoliberal conservation programs to deepening patterns of uneven development, and demanded  redress of disinvestment in urban housing stock through funding of weatherization for low-income households.  We argue that contests over urban energy metabolism offer a fruitful area to explore the possibilities of transforming uneven development from below.

In order to elucidate key aspects of the relationship between energy and constitutionality, Muinzer and Ellis (2017) have mapped the full spectrum of UK reserved/devolved constitutional powers and thrown into relief the complex form and nature of low carbon energy powers within that nexus. This low carbon-specific framework, and an understanding of its complex, contingent qualities and interconnected constitutional principles provides insight into the extent to which constitutional arrangements reify the territoriality of energy governance and policy capacity, structuring the policy and governance relationships between national and substate multi-level decarbonisation processes. This study develops this 'Energy Constitution' framework with reference to fuel poverty, honing in on the UK and according particular attention to Northern Ireland, a UK jurisdiction that often receives little attention in energy policy studies, but that has had notably high levels of fuel poverty, in addition to the weakest substate economy and the most energy insecure circumstances in the UK.