Seminar on sustainable energy solutions for mountain communities
2023-12-15 11:30
On December 12, 2023, a one-day seminar “Sustainable energy solutions for rural communities: lessons learned and development prospects” was held in Dushanbe.
The event provided an opportunity for representatives of local and international organizations involved in the introduction of renewable energy sources and energy efficient technologies at the local community level in Tajikistan to share their experience, exchange views on applied technologies, practices and approaches and discuss measures to improve the efficiency and sustainability of programs and projects.
The seminar program was dense and included 11 presenttions from speakers from 9 organizations and companies. For example, an Acted employee and the director of the Center for Tourism Development spoke about the use of energy-efficient and alternative technologies in the tourism sector, the deputy director of Sistema Avtomatika OJSC and a representative of the national Renewable Energy Association presented their experience in promoting solar energy, and the Geres Tajikistan project coordinator shared information about improving energy efficiency in residential buildings in rural areas.
In turn, representatives of the Little Earth spoke about their experience in introducing sustainable energy solutions in mountain communities, and also demonstrated some of the equipment that the organization distributed among families in the Yagnob Valley. Of particular interest to participants were solar lighting systems, efficient cooking stoves and solar shower bags.
The director of the Yagnob National Natural and Ethnographic Park was also present at the event and shared his opinion about the work of the Little Earth and the technologies being introduced. He thanked the organization for its help and expressed hope for continued cooperation.
After each presentation, the participants had active discussions, asked questions and shared their vision of improving the situation on the ground. Many noted the need to establish closer cooperation between organizations that, with the help of affordable and effective technologies, solve not only energy, but also socio-economic problems in the villages of the republic. A number of participants suggested holding such meetings on a regular basis.
The seminar was organized within the project “Sustainable natural resource management and women's participation in mountain communities of Yagnob”, which is implemented by the Little Earth with the support of Forum CIV with the assistance of the Swedish partner Centralasiengrupperna.