Total Energy Wiki
Welcome to the Total Energy Wiki!
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What is this about?
For some having energy access simply means a home being connected to grid electricity. But experience shows that in many countries the grid is unreliable and may fail for hours or days at a time. That when houses get grid electricity they can only afford an inefficient light bulb and still cook their meals on a three stone fire. And not only houses need energy, people need energy for their livelihoods and in the schools, health centres and community.
How we define energy access is critical in determining how we tackle energy poverty. How we define energy access determines where development funding and time is spent. We need to recognise the full range of ways that people use energy, and promote appropriate technologies that can meet these needs.
To achieve universal energy access for all, the International Energy Agency estimates that $36 billion needs to be spent every year for the next twenty years. This money needs to be spent wisely if poor people are to truly benefit. Join Practical Action and contribute to the Total Energy Wiki to influence the Sustainable Energy For All initiative.
Be a part of the Total Energy Information Revolution!
Current energy access data collection is driven by national governments and international organisations such as the International Energy Agency. The common definition of energy access uses supply-side indicators – being connected to the grid and purchasing a commercial fuel for cooking for example. This definition neglects appropriate technologies such as solar lanterns or improved biomass cookstoves. If these technologies aren’t included in the frameworks used for disbursing energy access funds then many of the poorest people will be left behind by any efforts to tackle energy poverty.
Furthermore, it is not sufficient to only consider the energy supply that people have; we need to look at how people actually use energy. To get closer to the improved wellbeing people can get from energy we need to look at the benefits from the supply – do people have lighting for enough hours every day, will cooking fill the kitchen with harmful smoke, is it possible to charge a mobile phone.
A way of defining and measuring access to energy that supports development for poor people is possible – Practical Action proposes Total Energy Access as one such means.
International development and technology charity Practical Action working with Energypedia has set up a Total Energy Wiki as an online energy access data collection system. It uses the Total Energy Access (TEA) framework to measuring the energy access situation for households. TEA is defined by a set of minimum standards for five key energy services at point of use, and the ESI defines the supply-side quality of the energy.
By participating in the Total Energy Wiki you will be contributing to the international debate on defining and measuring energy access. You will increase the knowledge and understanding around household energy data and prove that an alternative is possible. Practical Action is working with the Sustainable Energy for All (SE4All) initiative and World Bank to influence how they define and measure access to energy. The Total Energy Wiki is an important tool in the campaign.
The Total Energy Access Minimum Standards for a household are:
| Energy service |
Minimum standard | |
|---|---|---|
| Lighting |
1.1 |
300 lm for a minimum of 4 hours per night at household level |
| Cooking and water heating |
2.1 |
1 kg woodfuel or 0.3 kg charcoal or 0.04 kg LPG or 0.2 litres of kerosene or ethanol per person per day, taking less than 30 minutes per household per day to obtain |
| 2.2 |
Minimum efficiency of improved solid fuel stoves to be 40% greater than a three-stone fire in terms of fuel use | |
| 2.3 |
Annual mean concentrations of particulate matter (PM2.5) < 10 μg/m3 in households, with interim goals of 15 μg/m3, 25 μg/m3 and 35 μg/m3 | |
| Space heating |
3.1 |
Minimum daytime indoor air temperature of 18ºC |
| Cooling |
4.1 |
Households can extend life of perishable products by a minimum of 50% over that allowed by ambient storage |
| 4.2 |
Maximum apparent indoor air temperature of 30 C | |
| Information and communications |
5.1 |
People can communicate electronic information from their household |
| 5.2 |
People can access electronic media relevant to their lives and livelihoods in their household |
Total Energy Access if fulfilled by a household that meets all nine minimum standards.
The Energy Supply Index is defined by the following levels:
| Energy Supply |
Level |
Qualtiy of Supply |
|---|---|---|
| Household fuels |
0 |
Using non-standard solid fuels such as plastics |
| 1 |
Using solid fuel in an open/three-stone fire | |
| 2 |
Using solid fuel in an improved stove | |
| 3 |
Using solid fuel in an improved stove with smoke extraction/chimney | |
| 4 |
Mainly using a liquid or gas fuel or electricity, and associated stove | |
| 5 |
Using only a liquid or gas fuel or electricity, and associated stove | |
| Electricity |
0 |
No access to electricity at all |
| 1 |
Access to third party battery charging only | |
| 2 |
Access to stand-alone electrical appliance (eg solar lantern, solar phone charger) | |
| 3 |
Own limited power access for multiple home applications (eg Solar home systems or power-limited off-grid) | |
| 4 |
Poor quality and/or intermittent AC connection (remove 240V as non-standard) | |
| 5 |
Reliable AC connection available for all uses (remove 240V as non-standard) | |
| Mechanical Power |
0 |
No household access to tools or mechanical advantages |
| 1 |
Hand tools available for household tasks | |
| 2 |
Mechanical advantage devices available to magnify human/animal effort for most household tasks | |
| 3 |
Powered mechanical devices available for some household tasks | |
| 4 |
Powered mechanical devices available for most household tasks | |
| 5 |
Mainly purchasing mechanically processed goods and services |
Anyone with access to the internet can access the questionnaire and participate in and contribute to collecting data on energy access in a different way. It is intended to be a grassroots, crowd-sourced way of collecting data which could complement existing data collection systems, and provide a broader picture of how energy services are made available to and used by poor people.
The Total Energy Wiki aims to show the international community that a more progressive framework for energy access is possible. Practical Action will use the results and improved understanding gained from the Total Energy Wiki to try and influence the international energy access community.
By gathering these data sets, information can be compared across communities, countries and regions, helping the whole energy community work towards prioritising energy access where there are obvious gaps and shortfalls.
This initiative is also to show governments and international agencies that it is possible to collect data from the ground up, and a call for them to join us.
What's in for you?
- The Total Energy Wiki is a useful monitoring and evaluation tool. It can help your organisation monitor a project by measuring the impact it has had on the energy access situation in households.
- The Total Energy Wiki can help you communicate your impact to donors and stakeholders - “the project has brought Total Energy Access to 1000 households” or “now 50 people have met the minimum standard for lighting”.
- By participating in the Total Energy Wiki you will be contributing to the international debate on defining and measuring energy access. You will increase the knowledge and understanding around household energy data and prove that an alternative is possible. Practical Action is working with the Sustainable Energy for All initiative to influence how they define and measure access to energy. The Total Energy Wiki is an important tool in the campaign.
- One individual, picked at random, that has uploaded at least 10 fully completed questionnaires, will be invited to attend a regional launch of the Poor people’s energy outlook 2013. (see more on the Poor people's energy outlook 2012)
- Everyone who uploads completed questionnaires to the Total Energy Wiki will get a personal thank you in the Poor people’s energy outlook 2013. Please confirm on the questionnaire that you are happy for your name to appear in the report.
- Practical Action will feature two case studies in the Poor people’s energy outlook 2013 on one individual and one organisation that have uploaded the most questionnaires, including the optional questions on the TEA questionnaire.
- A chance to participate in and contribute to a crowd sourced movement that can generate real change in the lives of poor people around the world. By creating a more complete picture on energy access at the community level, communities and advocacy groups will be better able to campaign using evidence; and governments will be better informed to provide appropriate services where they are needed most.
