A number you likely know: 400 million. That’s how many people live without electricity in India. And not coincidentally, most of these people are poorest of the poor and live in rural villages or hamlets. The presence of such an enormous population eager for something better has given rise to new commercial products and services such as solar lanterns, solar home systems, and, the subject of this blog, micro-grids.

The theme of the Rio + 20 Conference was "Green economy in the context of sustainable development and eradication of poverty" and it has not been possible to the find common ground in the serious differences over what constitute economic growth and human wellbeing – ‘the future we want’. Humans have always altered their natural environment, what is new is that the adverse effects of economic activities exceed those of resource extraction. Soon the Earth will not be able to absorb the carbon dioxide generated by excessive consumption.

Background

Balancing national strategic interests and global concerns requires new rules for collective action

The upcoming sequel to the 1992 Earth Summit, once again to be held in Brazil, will provide fresh opportunities to draft a common global agenda to safeguard the well-being of humanity -- and the planet. But serious differences over what constitutes economic growth and human wellbeing may lead to a less-than-successful outcome.

The climate negotiations have finally begun to focus on the criteria for reductions in emissions of greenhouse gases to be agreed by 2015, and new pitfalls have emerged.