Let there be Light: Addressing the Energy Access Challenge through Innovation

Two great challenges face humanity:  energy access and climate change. There are 1.3 billion people who lack access to electricity, but providing them equitable and genuine access – enough to thrive, not simply survive – may conflict with existing frameworks for addressing climate change. Or, this challenge can be met through innovation in energy access. Kartikeya will draw on his research to frame the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead for the energy access sector and the base of the pyramid in a climate constrained world.

Kartikeya Singh, a PhD candidate at The Fletcher School and CIERP Junior Research Fellow, received his Master of Environmental Science degree at the School of Forestry & Environmental Studies at Yale University. His research interests include climate change and energy policy, innovation and the geopolitics of energy use. His Master’s thesis focused on effective management of access to energy for rural communities in India through decentralized renewable energy systems. Previously, Kartikeya was a consultant with the Environmental Defense Fund. He is the co-founder of the Indian Youth Climate Network (IYCN), which has served as a forum for voices of the budding youth climate movement across South Asia. He has been involved with international climate negotiations since the UN climate talks in Bali in 2007 and has served as part of the negotiating team of the government of Maldives at the climate talks  from 2009 to 2012.