As COP29 has come to a close, we reflect on the opportunity it provided for EPP to advance our work around using renewable energy as a building block for peace. In particular, we are encouraged by a growing coalition of partners mobilizing around this opportunity. Together with the Stanley Center, Clingendael Institute, and Stimson Center, we co-hosted an event on “Renewable Energy and Peace” at ODI’s Climate, Peace and Transboundary Resilience Pavilion. A recording of the event can be viewed here. The Climate and Security Envoy of Norway provided opening remarks, and speakers included representatives from the Government of Bangladesh, International Crisis Group, REN21, Global Solar Council, and IRENA. EPP also participated in a roundtable on “Corporate Sourcing as a Catalyst for Clean Energy Finance,” which was co-hosted by AWS and the Global Renewables Alliance.
This marked the third straight COP with a focus on Peace, highlighted by the Baku Call for Peace, Relief and Recovery, which recognizes the interlinkages between conflict and climate change and calls for “peace-sensitive climate action, while scaling up support for the most vulnerable communities worldwide,” including through the creation of the Baku Climate and Peace Action Hub. Much more work remains to be done to better link the global push around renewable energy with the emerging peace agenda, and for these ideas to be mainstreamed into future climate discussions.
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P-REC Aggregation Facility selected for the Catalytic Climate Finance Facility
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EPP and Camco are thrilled to have been selected for the Catalytic Climate Finance Facility (CC Facility)'s first cohort! The CC Facility grant will support the launch of our P-REC Aggregation Facility, which mobilizes capital for distributed solar and hydro projects across 14 fragile countries in Sub-Saharan Africa through the aggregation and sale of Peace Renewable Energy Credits (Peace RECs).
The CC Facility is a partnership between Climate Policy Initiative and Convergence Blended Finance. It accelerates the implementation of high-impact, ready-to-scale financial structures through a suite of services that include grant funding, technical support, and a market-building learning hub.
Learn more here.
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New publication: Why Renewable Energy Matters in the Context of Peace and Stability
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 We are pleased to have contributed to a new policy brief on Why Renewable Energy Matters in the Context of Peace and Stability. Authored by Clingendael, EPP, and the Stanley Center for Peace and Security, the brief brings attention to the risks and vulnerabilities facing many fragile and conflict-affected states related to fossil fuel dependence, and highlights the ways that decentralized renewable energy can help to foster stability and integrate climate and energy into peacebuilding efforts. The brief builds on our emerging partnership with these co-authors, and a series of joint events on the theme of “Renewable Energy and Peace.”
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In case you missed it: EPP in the media
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EPP’s Doug Miller receives Green Power Leadership Award
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 Doug Miller, EPP’s Director of Market Development, was recently announced as the winner of the Green Power Leadership - Leader in Education - Awards, which are presented annually by the Center for Resource Solutions and the US Environmental Protection Agency. The award recognizes effective and unique programs and organizations focusing on green power education.
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New Powering Peace reports: New paths for clean energy transitions in fragile settings
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Led by our partners at Dartmouth College and the Stimson Center, two new Powering Peace reports build out the argument and new paths for implementation of clean energy projects in and around UN Peacekeeping missions in fragile regions.
The first report, Peacekeeping and Clean Energy: Can Climate and Development Goals Align in Fragile States, identified strong support for climate and renewable energy among the stated policies of host governments and key international partners in the CAR, DRC and South Sudan.
The second report, A Case Study in Improving Environmental Management in UN Peacekeeping explores the lessons learned from a US-funded pilot project to support two solar hybrid power systems to Nepali forces for training and deployment to their battalion in South Sudan.
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Here are a few of the articles and reports we’ve been reading on issues of climate change, conflict, and renewable energy in fragile and humanitarian settings:
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A series of recent reports on climate finance, including: ODI’s analysis that explored the lack of climate-related development finance going to fragile and conflict-affected countries, Chatham Houses report on Closing the Financing Gap which explores the challenges of increasing climate finance to emerging markets and developing countries; and the Council for Foreign Relations backgrounder on Understanding the Global Push for Climate Finance.
- An updated analysis was conducted on the relationship between climate change and conflict, which finds that extreme climate is associated with elevated risk of inter-group conflict, intra-personal violence, and self-harm.
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RMI’s report titled Powering Up the Global South: The cleantech path to growth, which outlines a cleantech energy future for the Global South.
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Wishing you all good health,
Energy Peace Partners
P.S. You can find regular updates from EPP on LinkedIn. |
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