Renewable Energy & Energy Efficiency
Access to reliable, clean energy is a keystone for climate mitigation, economic development, and social equity. Renewable energy refers to power derived from naturally replenished sources such as solar, wind, hydro, geothermal, and bioenergy. Energy efficiency means using less energy to perform the same task—reducing waste, optimising systems, and ensuring that appliances, buildings, industry, and transport consume energy smartly.
Many communities still depend heavily on fossil fuels, which emit greenhouse gases, degrade air quality, and lead to long-term environmental harm. Inefficiencies in generation, transmission, and usage increase costs and strain infrastructure. In many regions, high initial capital expense, limited technical capacity, regulatory barriers, and grid instability hamper deployment of renewables and efficiency measures.
Our Approach
Climate Change Hub supports the deployment of renewable energy systems especially in off-grid and vulnerable areas, combining them with energy efficiency measures to reduce overall demand. We work with local governments, communities, NGOs, and private sector partners to design and install solar, wind and small hydro plants; retrofit buildings; improve industrial processes; provide energy audits; and promote energy‐smart technologies. We contribute to policy and regulatory reform that incentivises clean energy and efficiency (e.g. feed-in tariffs, net metering, standards for appliances/buildings).
Impact & Opportunities
By improving energy efficiency and increasing renewable energy supply, we lower greenhouse gas emissions, reduce energy poverty, and enhance resilience (e.g. making energy supply more stable and less vulnerable to fuel price fluctuations). Communities gain from lower electricity bills, improved air quality, and new jobs in clean energy sectors. Opportunities include scaling mini-grid solutions, integrating storage technologies, coupling renewables with smart grids, advancing affordable financing mechanisms, and enabling energy efficiency in transport and cooling technologies.