Vinita Rodrigues, Vivek Mustafa Gilani, Saranya Acharya, Maya Seshagiri
Extended abstract 3-240-26 Urban Poor Women in India, living in heat-trapping buildings in conditions of cooling-energy poverty (i.e. inadequate energy access for operating active cooling appliances and no access to passive cooling solutions) are inequitably impacted by climate-crisis induced extreme heat which causes health issues stemming from homes being too hot to sleep in before midnight and social reproduction roles which require them to wake up hours before other family members. Paradoxically, women are under-represented in the ‘green economy’ response to extreme heat (eg. cool roof programmes). The paper presents insights from, and the way forward from the field-test phase of a Women's Heat Action Cooperative (WEHAC) programme underway in an informal settlement in Chennai, India to enhance access to passive cooling solutions co-created with the community. The WEHAC offers cooling products and services to residents who pay an affordable estimated monthly-installments (EMI) to the WEHAC to maintain a revolving fund that serves as future investment capital. The paper presents learnings related to structure of financial/social incentives for initial mobilization of women’s entrepreneurial interests, outcomes of testing solutions to underwrite risk of residents not paying EMIs, and elucidates the process of establishing an ecosystem of trades, material supply chains to foster a locally-owned decentralized response to cooling energy poverty. It also presents results of an ongoing effort to establish a One-Stop-Shop ( technical and finance assistance facility) for WEHACs where finance and in-kind assistance is derived from a multitude of sources (e.g. microfinance institutions, impact investment) and through repurposing municipal development schemes. The paper presents results from the applied policy research work of policy ‘hacking’ (i.e reinterpreting, repurposing) of existing policies (eg. heat action plans, women’s empowerment programs) and unlocking financing from under-subscribed schemes. Download presentation.
Purpose: Nigeria sits on massive renewable potential, yet clean power barely trickles into the national grid. This paper digs into why the transition keeps stalling despite the Electricity Act 2023 handing states the keys to their own power markets. Rather than celebrating the new legal framework, it examines the commercial and technical friction that is blocking developers from connecting to the grid. Methodology: This study used a qualitative policy review to examine Nigeria's renewable energy regulatory framework by reviewing key legal documents alongside relevant academic and industry publications. The selected materials, published mainly between 2023 and 2026, were examined through a structured narrative analysis to identify policy gaps affecting renewable energy policy readiness. Findings: The findings show that Nigeria has made important legal and policy progress, but implementation remains weak. The electricity market is fragmented, and renewable-energy developers continue to face challenges such as unclear federal-state coordination, limited grid capacity and flexibility, non-cost-reflective tariffs, and insufficient use of smart-grid, storage, and circular-economy technologies. The preliminary assessment produced a readiness score of 2.33 out of 6, suggesting that while policy ambition is evident, the conditions needed for effective market delivery are still inadequate. Unique Contribution to Theory, Practice and Policy: The six-pillar framework gives researchers a concrete diagnostic for measuring transition readiness beyond checkbox compliance. For industry players, it highlights exactly where projects get stuck between permitting chaos and unbankable contracts. For policymakers, the paper makes the case for binding federal-state coordination treaties, mandatory storage and digital standards, aggressive mini-grid scaling, and placing consumer affordability at the absolute center of market design rather than treating it as an afterthought.