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Page of Kavita Rai[top] [end]About myselfI have been involved in the field of renewable energy since 1993 and have remained connected to the energy sector working at various Organisations and Companies such as ITDG (now Practical Action), IT Power and ESD UK. In between jobs, I took time out to go back into the world of academia learning to put theory and practical experiences together. I am currently employed as a Programme Manager for GVEP International, an Organisation aiming to improve energy access initiatives in developing countries, mostly in Africa, Latin America and Asia. My interests lie not only in energy policy and programs, but simultaneously the linkages to the wider social and political sphere of ‘development’. I am particularly interested in issues of social equity, and thus a greater emphasis of my own work is on reducing imbalances of poverty and gender. Over the years, I have performed consultancies in renewable energy as well as other development related projects both in Nepal, my home country where I worked for 8 years and internationally. My approach to energy issues in development takes off from my anthropological grounding of taking a holistic perspective, both in analysis and practice. I think there will be more success when there is an active local and global engagement amongst three forces - the ‘citizens’, the state and the market, powered by scientific knowledge and evidence.[top] [end]Household energy experienceI have been involved in integrated energy assessments at the community level in the past. I feel that improving the kitchen's environment, especially for women and children is an urgent necessity. In all my field research, I have interacted with women who have used improved cookstoves or biogas technologies and found a genuine recognition of positive impacts. I once started to review the ICS programme in Nepal but could not finish it as I left professional work to join a Phd course. In that short time, I learnt that a small improvement such as introducing cookstoves need a concerted strategy based on an understanding of social and cultural perceptions, kitchen size and directions of house, appropriate finance and information, maintenance facilities, and above all, a willingness from policy makers to change the conditions of millions of families who inhale the deadly smoke from their kitchen hearths every day of their lives. These are all not new but a push needs to be made nonetheless.[top] [end]About GVEP InternationalGVEP International (Global Village Energy Partnership) is a UK based NGO, established to promote social and economic development in rural and peri-urban areas of developing countries through access to appropriate modern energy services. The Organisation believes that working in partnership with a large number of cross-sectoral stakeholders offers the best opportunity to achieve this objective. GVEP International will work to connect partners, improve communication and transfer knowledge around access to sustainable energy. Look at our website below to see how we can help you and how you can help us!Website: www.gvepinternational.org | |
Page created:
05 July 2005; Last edited:
31 March 2008; Version: 3 | |
Pagename: User:KavitaRai @HEDON: PHCA | |
