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posted by mrpg on Sunday June 06 2021, @03:31AM   Printer-friendly
from the good dept.

Reducing poverty can actually lower energy demand, finds research:

[...] We found that households that do have access to clean fuels, safe water, basic education and adequate food—that is, those not in extreme poverty—can use as little as half the energy of the national average in their country.

This is important, as it goes directly against the argument that more resources and energy will be needed for people in the global south to escape extreme poverty. The biggest factor is the switch from traditional cooking fuels, like firewood or charcoal, to more efficient (and less polluting) electricity and gas.

In Zambia, Nepal and Vietnam, modern energy resources are extremely unfairly distributed—more so than income, general spending, or even spending on leisure. As a consequence, poorer households use more dirty energy than richer households, with ensuing health and gender impacts. Cooking with inefficient fuels consumes a lot of energy, and even more when water needs to be boiled before drinking.


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  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday June 07 2021, @04:03PM (3 children)

    by Anonymous Coward on Monday June 07 2021, @04:03PM (#1142778)

    just wondering if "exponential" growth has two paths.
    the one which we are on, which requires pollution and resource destruction to go hand in hand with growth.l -or- is there another way?
    "life" has exponential growth built-in. the "smarts" of the human brain, in this other case, would be to lend a helping hand to "trial-and-error" darwinism?

  • (Score: 1) by khallow on Tuesday June 08 2021, @03:04AM (2 children)

    by khallow (3766) Subscriber Badge on Tuesday June 08 2021, @03:04AM (#1143015) Journal

    which requires pollution and resource destruction to go hand in hand with growth

    If we actually look at developed world societies, they are notable for their low pollution and control over resource destruction. There's something wrong with the narrative.

    • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday June 08 2021, @02:26PM (1 child)

      by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday June 08 2021, @02:26PM (#1143133)

      No, they are not. Pollution is only low relative to the extremely high pollution in "undeveloped" areas, not low on any scale relative to human history.

      • (Score: 1) by khallow on Tuesday June 08 2021, @03:38PM

        by khallow (3766) Subscriber Badge on Tuesday June 08 2021, @03:38PM (#1143164) Journal

        Pollution is only low relative to the extremely high pollution in "undeveloped" areas, not low on any scale relative to human history.

        Such as the counterexample of 60 years ago? There are no more killer smogs in London, for a glaring example.