By: Michael Simon There is no defensible way to continue damming the world’s rivers. That was the message that a powerful uprising of individuals, NGOs and social movements delivered to the World Hydropower Congress last week. (It’s not too late to lend your voice here.) Civil Society Constructively Challenges the World Hydropower Congress 9 MAY 2019 from Todd…
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By: Josh Klemm, Policy Director Earlier this month, the DRC government seemed to acknowledge what we have long argued: The proposed Inga 3 Dam, touted for decades as a fix-all to the country’s energy woes, is not a good investment. By calling on developers to radically alter the design of Inga 3, the DRC’s minister in…
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By: Rudo A. Sanyanga, former Africa Program Director This article was previously published in thePerspectives #02/2017: Putting People Back Into Infrastructure The electrification rates of Africa are appalling: the lowest in the world, with as little as 1 percent access in some rural areas. The average electrification rates in sub-Saharan Africa range from 16 percent in rural areas to about 59…
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By Josh Klemm, Policy Director, and Florencia Ortúzar from AIDA This article was originally published on Climate Homes News The Green Climate Fund (GCF) is the primary financial mechanism established under the UN climate body, to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and help countries cope with climate change. It is cause for hope, due to its ability to…
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By: Monti Aquirre, Latin America Program Director Last year, International Rivers and the Peruvian organization Forum Solidaridad commissioned a study about Peru’s energy future. We wanted to understand what plans were in the works, and rigorously examine whether these plans were in step with 21st century realities. We asked Dr. Alberto Ríos Villacorta, an engineer, researcher and renewable…
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By: Sarah Bardeen, former Communications Director Dipti Vaghela is passionate about micro hydro. To be fair, she’s also obsessed with other mini-grids, including biomass gasifiers and small-scale solar. But since 2006, Vaghela has been deep in the weeds on this subject, working as both a researcher and a practitioner to develop community-based micro-hydro in South…
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By: Amazon Watch – Asia Indigenous Peoples Pact – Asociación Interamericana para la Defensa del Ambiente (AIDA) – Bianca Jagger Human Rights Foundation – Carbon Market Watch – Fondation Danielle Mitterrand (France Libertés) International Rivers – Jeunes Volontaires pour l’Environnement International – Movimiento Rios Vivos – Oxfam International – Rede Latinoamericana contra represas y por…
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By: Sarah Bardeen zom·bie dam /ˈzämbē dam/ noun 1. A proposed dam project that activists successfully halt before it’s built, only to see it rise again and again – years later – in different forms. We’ve all seen classic zombie movies like “Night of the Living Dead.” If you haven’t, here’s a summary: A member of…
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By: Institute for Policy Studies and International Rivers The Green Climate Fund must be a vehicle for a fundamental shift in global energy lending to ensure a transformation to low-carbon and climate-resilient energy sources that are universally accessible for all people by 2030. We call on the Green Climate Fund not to finance dirty energy. But…
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By: Katy Yan Update: Twelve civil society organizations, including International Rivers, have sent letters to the United Nations (UN) Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and the UN Independent Expert on Human Rights and the Environment urging them to conduct formal investigations into the human rights impacts of the Barro Blanco dam located on the Tabasará River in Panama. The…
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By: Wim Jonker Klunne Africa is home to one of the world’s largest off-grid populations: approximately 590 million people live with no connection to their national electric grid, according to the International Energy Agency. Grid expansion in Africa has been notoriously slow, and thus new solutions are needed to bridge this energy divide. Small hydropower can play a pivotal role…
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