Coral reefs protect against natural hazards by reducing wave energy by an average of 97%. Reef crests alone dissipate up to 86% of this energy. Mineral Accretion Technology, which is more than 40 years old, can be used to grow protective barrier reefs using pre-fabricated steel structures and low-voltage electricity (similar to that used for charging mobile phones) to grow CaCO3 (limestone) using minerals dissolved in seawater.

Following a 5-month long conflict between armed groups and the Philippines government security forces in Marawi City, USAID advanced a multi-pronged menu of sustainable and targeted solutions for internally displaced persons (IDPs) across different sectors. The package of quick response development assistance was designed to alleviate the sufferings and improve the plight of roughly 360,000 IDPs.

Over the last decade, the Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI) has experienced a proliferation of development partners and projects, with a resulting increase in the transactional burden on national personnel and government departments. Projects have tended to be stand-alone, with limited cooperation between funders.

The presentation discussed some initial interventions in community-scale solar pumping for agriculture. Preliminary learnings suggested that the approach is suitable for remote communities. Scaling these interventions holds promise and can facilitate further investments at the nexus of energy, water, and agriculture, accruing benefits for the communities.

Solar organic Rankine cycle technology (SORC) uses thermal energy from the sun to produce electricity. In addition, it provides hot water, space heating, and cooling for people living in Himalayas and Terai regions of Nepal. Furthermore, it displaces the need of using kerosene or other traditional sources for lighting homes in remote areas of Nepal. Overall, when this technology will be fully matured, it could be one of the appropriate technologies for the sustainable development of the country.

Electricity is a basic requirement for providing health services but many geographies lack reliable, accessible, and sustainable forms of energy. Where electricity is available, power quality is poor and diesel generators come are used. The on-going pandemic further impresses the need for robust health, water, sanitation infrastructure in the developing world.

This presentation discussed energy efficiency measures to reduce energy consumption in a rural hinterland in India through the use of bio-fuel for cooking applications, rooftop-mounted solar PVs, and solar water heaters. It also shares some lessons learned in undertaking these measures, which can be replicated, and some suggestions for improvement.

This presentation drew lessons learned from Indonesia’s experience of several ministers in electrifying remote and secluded communities through Photovoltaic technology. The Indonesian PV off-grid has gained a remarkable achievement in slightly over 600 villages, connecting around 75,000 houses, created employment opportunities and offsetting 2,610 tons CO2 per year through kerosene avoidance. From a technical aspect, this program went through at least three generations of the battery system.

The report expounded on the experiences and models of the development and utilization of waste resources in rural China. In association with the implementation of the overall strategy of the Rural Revitalization of the Chinese government, the report put forward the new idea that rural clean energy helps in constructing ecological and liveable countryside.

As we emerge from the months of personal physical isolation to the gradual process of regaining productivity at work, we are likely to face numerous challenges in securing a workspace with reduced risks of infection. This presentation seeked to highlight the technical challenges and contradictions, with energy implications, in making our buildings and factories safe and comfortable.