CROP Newsletter Vol.8, No.1, March 2001
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international social science council / conseil international des sciences sociales newsletter Comparative Research Programme On Poverty Vol. 8, No. 1, March 2001 contents frontiers of poverty research Page 1 POVERTY AND ENERGY in-depth studies on the impact on poverty reduction by consumptive, productive and In spite of the international attention on social energy services. The traditional divi- Poverty and Energy poverty reduction, the energy and poverty sion of the energy sector into electricity, by Nienke Swagemakers linkages remain virtually unattended. The fossil fuels, modern renewable energies and World Bank has shown that approximately traditional use of wood fuel and other bio- 40% of the world population today lack mass resources hampers an integrated un- access to modern energy services. It is ac- derstanding of energy options for the poor. Page 2 knowledged that improving access to pro- Much has been done to raise awareness on ductive, consumptive and social energy the primary importance of bio-mass re- services in rural areas could be a key factor sources for the energy economy of most Demography of Poverty to enhancing local sustainable development. developing countries. Except for gender stud- in Latin America During the past decades, much experience ies, human energy and animal power are has been gained in the field of rural energy. generally neglected despite the important Traditional technologies have been im- role they play in the lives of poor people. proved and research and development on Most of the research on poverty and pov- Page 3 new energy technologies have resulted in erty reduction has been conducted in the mature products that are commercially avail- social and economic sciences. Unfortunately able. New institutional and financial mecha- people within the energy sector hardly picked Editorial nisms offer new opportunities to deliver up the results and consequences of this kind energy services to poor people. Furthermore of research and experience. To overcome the Call for papers the policy context is changing: governments gap between the energy and poverty field an are increasingly reducing their involvement improved insight into poverty in its relation in the provision of basic services and leave to the energy needs, priorities and options of CROP Scientific the field open to the private sector. The the poor is necessary. To contribute to fill- Committee 2001-2002 “climate change” agenda has created mo- ing-up this gap, a participatory research mentum to start the implementation of en- program on energy and poverty, EASE (Ena- ergy efficiency and renewable energy bling Access to Sustainable Energy) has projects in order to reduce emissions of been developed. The mission of EASE is to Page 4 greenhouse gases. Despite the huge envi- improve insight into energy and poverty ronmental benefits, it is obvious that most links and to promote sustainable energy projects and investments aimed at cost-ef- options among local stakeholders that con- New Centre fective mitigation of climate change do not tribute effectively to poverty reduction in for International address poverty reduction effectively. rural areas. Lessons learnt from initiatives aimed at im- Poverty Research In June 2000 the EASE programme, financed proving energy services for the poor are by the Dutch Government, has been initiated scarce and have not been used to promote by a one-year inception phase in 3 develop- Notices changes of policies and actions by govern- ing countries: Bolivia, Tanzania and Viet- ments and the private sector. It is hard to find nam. In each country a local organisation C R O P S e c r e t a r i a t , F o s s w i n c k e l s g a t e 7 , N - 5 0 0 7 B e r g e n, N o r w a y CROP Secretariat A Ph: +47 55 58 97 39 Fax: +47 55 58 97 45 Post e-mail: [email protected] http://www.crop.org Comparative Research Programme On Poverty, ISSC takes the lead to form a national EASE team inception phase, pilot studies will be imple- from a process perspective, not as a static and a national advisory board representing mented to test the research methodologies in segment within society. For example, one different stakeholders of society such as practice. focus will be the role of (changing) energy governments, NGOs, academic and private After the inception phase, EASE will enter a services when people become poorer or when sector organisations. FAO joined the EASE full-fledged implementation phase. Detailed people become better-off. Insight into these initiative through a pilot program to be im- energy and poverty studies will be under- linkages will be shared with policy makers. plemented in Honduras. taken in different developing countries, partly Local actions will be supported to promote During the inception phase a methodologi- based on the lessons learnt from the incep- sustainable energy options that have a posi- cal framework for research will be devel- tion phase. In each country, an analysis will tive impact on poverty reduction. oped. This will enable a comparison of the be made of the poverty oriented activities of Readers may take this opportunity to share EASE results on a country-by-country ba- organisations within the energy sector and of their experience and capacity with us. More sis. As existing information on energy and energy oriented activities within organisa- information on EASE is available through poverty links is scarce, new information will tions involved in poverty reduction. Field Nienke Swagemakers at ETC Energy, P.O. be gathered. Existing experiences in e.g. the research will complement the “white spots” in Box 64, 3830 AB Leusden, The Netherlands, agricultural and forestry sector will be used the current knowledge of local and (inter-) email: [email protected] and each national team will develop a na- national stakeholders on energy and poverty tional EASE research toolkit. To finalise the linkages. The research will look at poverty Demography of Poverty in Latin America A workshop on Demography of Poverty in infant health in Puerto Rico”; Francisca 1996”; Ernesto Chávez Negrín, Cuba, Latin America was held in Buenos Aires 9-11 Márquez, Chile, ”Trayectorias ocupacionales ”Población y crisis económica en Cuba: la November 2000, organised in co-operation y movilidad social en habitantes de extrema familia y la dinámica demográfica del período between CROP and Consejo Latinoamericano pobreza en Santiago de Chile y Montevideo, especial”; Gian Matteo Apuzzo, Italy. ”Glo- de Ciencias Sociales (CLACSO). The main Uruguay”; Esteban Nina Baltazar, Colombia, balization and fight for urban space: poverty sponsor of the event was the Mellon Founda- ”Movilidad social y transmisón and citizenship in a global city”; Laura tion, with additional funding from UNESCO, intergeneracional de la pobreza en Colom- Tavares Ribeiro Soares, Brazil, “A demografia Brazil; CLACSO; Ministerio de Desarrollo bia”; Susana Beatriz Torrado, Argentina, da pobreza e as politicas sociais na America Social y Medio Ambiente/SIEMPRO; “Dinámica demográfica y reproducción de la Latina: transicao ou retrocesso?”. Gobierno de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires/ pobreza (Argentina, 1945-1999)”; Jorge Secretary General of CLACSO, Dr. Atilio A. Secretarìa de Promociòn Social; CLACSO and Ernesto Martínez Pizarro, Chile, “Demografía Boron; The Argentinean Secretary of Social CROP. de la pobreza en un caso de transición Policy, Dr. Eduardo Bustelo, and Chair of 21 papers were presented and 44 people par- demográfica avanzada, Chile”; Diego F. CROP, Prof. Else Øyen, opened the workshop ticipated in the workshop which was carried Casaravilla, Argentina, “Comprendiendo la with presentations of the issues to be dis- out in Spanish and English. demografía de la inmigración indocumentada cussed. The discussions at the workshop en el Cono Sur”; Vladimir Ruvinsky, Colom- The workshop was planned by a Programme provided a broad exchange of ideas and con- bia, “The internal migration and urban pov- Committee consisting of: Dr. Atilio A. Boron, cepts crossing disciplinary and cultural bor- erty in contemporary Colombia”; Silvana Secretary General of CLACSO, Argentina; ders. The more experienced researchers pro- Vargas (presented by Prof. Leif Jensen), USA, Prof. Leif Jensen, The Pennsylvania State vided valuable input to the new generation of “New place, new life: the occupational adap- University, USA; Prof. Alfredo Lattes, Centro researchers working with poverty and de- tation of young migrants and non-migrants in de Estudios de Población (CENEP), Argen- mography in Latin America. Lima, Peru”; Camilo Contreras Delgado, tina; Prof. Carlos Welti Chanes, Universidad Some of the papers from the workshop will be Mexico, ”Movilidad laboral geográfica: Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM), included in a book about Poverty and Demog- recurso social y económico en la cuenca Mexico; and Prof. Simone Wajnman, raphy in Latin America. Prof. Leif Jensen will carbonífera de Coahuila, México”; Martin co-ordinate the work, and members of the Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Brazil. Valdivia, Peru, “Household structure and pov- Programme Committee for the workshop will A background paper for the workshop was erty over the life cycle: a first look at evidence function as the board of editors for the book. prepared in March 2000, by Carlos Welti from Peruvian cohorts”; Paula Crabtree, Nor- Chanes, President of the Mexican Society of way, “Divisions of relative poverty between CROP/CLACSO CO-OPERATION Demography. contrasting households in insular south The recent workshop in Buenos Aires will be The following papers were presented and Chile”; Carlos Rafael Rodríguez Solera, followed up by an increased amount of activ- discussed: Elinor Bisig, Argentina, ”La salud Mexico, Características económicas, demográficas y sociales de la población que ity by CROP in Latin America. During the reproductiva adolescente en la provincia de vive en condiciones de pobreza en el estado de workshop an agreement for future academic Córdoba, República Argentina”; Dalia Elena Hidalgo”; Carmen Ledo, The Netherlands, and administrative co-operation between Romero Montilla, Brazil, ”La mortalidad ”Pobreza, inequidad y exclusión social en CROP and CLACSO was finalised.