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PISCES Energy Research Programme

The PISCES Energy Research Programme is led by the African Centre for Technology Studies, Kenya (ACTS) with lead partners Practical Action, M.S.Swaminathan Research Foundation (MSSRF), the University of Dar es Salaam and the University of Edinburgh together with a network of national and international partners and collaborators. Funded by the UK’s Department for International Development (DFID).

2007 saw the start of a new 5-year research programme on energy called PISCES, . The Inception workshop in Nairobi 26-29th September was attended by governments, donors, International Organisations, NGOs, companies and universities. Participation in initial consultations has come from across the regions of focus in Kenya, Tanzania, South India and Sri Lanka.

PISCES stands for Policy Innovation Systems for Clean Energy Security. Its objective is to produce policy-relevant information and approaches that can be applied by governments in developing the role of bioenergy in delivering energy access for the poor. It is the focus of PISCES on bioenergy – incorporating biomass from natural sources, biowaste streams from agriculture and industry, and biofuels from purpose grown energy crops – which has resonated with an increasingly polarised international debate. That debate centres on whether and how humanity should find more of our energy from bioenergy sources, and how that pathway might affect the poor and the environment.

Currently 2.5 billion people still rely on traditional biomass for basic energy services (IEA data). Meanwhile there is exploding global interest and activity in the growing of energy crops for the production of biofuels. While increased cultivation of energy crops could provide increased energy access for the poor, without appropriate policies in place it could easily pass them by or even damage their livelihoods. At the macro-level bioenergy has the potential to increase global energy supplies without increasing carbon emissions. At the local level it could absorb vital water supplies and fertile land needed to cultivate food.

PISCES project logo
PISCES project logo
It is against this backdrop of unprecedented global interest in bioenergy that PISCES will integrate research on water, food, energy and environmental security, with a focus on the role of bioenergy in increasing energy access and security of livelihoods for the poor without degrading the climate and environment. The new and existing technologies, including plant varieties, processes, appliances and practices, that are required if bioenergy is to power sustainable development will be analysed, developed and tested. The circular and dynamic relationships between the climate and environment, and bioenergy production and consumption, will be investigated and evaluated. Socio-economic studies and market analysis will aim to determine the types of structures, incentives and regulations that can create and sustain access and delivery of bioenergy to poor people. A networked centre of expertise bringing together experts and policymakers will be developed to bring these and other strands of research together and, crucially, into use.

For more information please contact steven.hunt@...

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Page created: 02 February 2008; Last edited: 02 February 2008; Version: 0
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