Former ERDE Lab member Dr. Devyani Singh representing B.C. Green Party
We are excited to announce that former ERDE Lab member Dr. Devyani Singh is running as the B.C. Green Party representative for the Vancouver-Point Grey riding in BC’s 42nd Provincial General Election. Devyani’s past work has centered around science for the public good, inspired by the magnitude and importance of global climate change. We wish […]
Want citizens to care about climate change? Write them a cheque
If citizens think they’ll personally and financially benefit from a carbon tax, maybe politicians would take action. Thomas Hafeneth/Unsplash Abhishek Kar, University of British Columbia and Hisham Zerriffi, University of British Columbia Climate scientists insist in a recent report that fundamental changes in how energy is consumed and supplied are urgently required to avoid […]
The uncertain future of U.S. coal communities
In this June 2017 photo, a coal barge is positioned as a backdrop behind U.S. President Donald Trump as he speaks during a rally in Cincinnati. A coal company executive said Trump personally promised to activate emergency legal authorities to keep dirty or economically uncompetitive coal plants from shutting down. (AP Photo/John Minchillo, File) Sandeep […]
Alberta oil communities need a transition plan, not new pipelines
Protesters are seen outside an event Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was attending in Calgary on Nov. 22, 2018. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jeff McIntosh Sandeep Pai, University of British Columbia; Hisham Zerriffi, University of British Columbia, and Kathryn Harrison, University of British Columbia Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s recent visit to Calgary drew thousands of protesters frustrated […]
The twin imperatives of global energy transitions
Globally, we are facing two different but simultaneous energy transformations. The imperatives driving these two changes are grounded in two different contexts. One is aimed towards a future global energy system that is carbon-free to deal with the climate change problem. The second, for areas without modern energy access primarily in rural parts of the […]
Tackling the social and political impacts of fossil fuel industry decline
(@paisandy) Energy is indispensable to human existence. It has played and will play a crucial role in shaping our society. In the pre-industrial era, biomass was the dominant energy source. However, its share in the energy mix fell after James Watt invented the coal-driven steam engine in 1769. The first widespread use of this efficient […]
Rethinking Ujjwala through the lens of behavioral science
Hello, everyone. This is my first blog post in the ERDE lab! Shreerupa and I wrote an article discussing the nuances of Ujjwala from behavioral sciences perspective and why it is not comparable to the rural adoption of mobile phone and vaccines. A heavily edited version was published in the print editions of Hindustan Times-HT […]
The New ERDELab Blog
Hi all. After a long hiatus, I’ve decided to start up a research oriented blog on my group’s website again. You can expect to see regular posts from myself as well as the graduate students in the research group (and sometimes co-authored posts) covering topics such as energy access, energy transitions, technology adoption, policy and […]
Has India’s Ujjwala Program enabled millions to shift to Liquefied Petroleum Gas as a primary cooking fuel?
Abhishek Kar, Devyani Singh, Hisham Zerriffi The global energy poverty problem associated with cooking with solid fuels such as firewood, crop residue, cattle dung, and coal is well recognized and at the core of Sustainable Development Goal 71. A key solution being promoted is to facilitate households switching to cleaner burning fuels such as Liquefied […]