Finding the energy to address gender concerns in development

Project administrated by Halcrow Ltd This document is an output from a project funded by the UK Department for International Development (DFID) for the benefit of developing countries. The views expressed are not necessarily those of DFID. About the authors Dr Joy Clancy is the main author of this paper. She is a Reader in technology transfer with the Technology and Development Group, University of Twente. Her first degree is in Chemistry and she has a PhD in Engineering. Dr Clancy's research has focused on small-scale energy systems for developing countries, including the technology transfer process and the role that energy plays in small businesses. Gender and energy has been an important factor addressed in this research. She is a founder member of ENERGIA, the International Network on Gender and Sustainable Energy and she continues to act as a technical advisor. She has acted on a number of occasions as an advisor on gender and energy to international development agencies, including SIDA, UNDP and the World Bank. Dr Margaret Skutsch is a social geographer who has worked on energy problems in developing countries since 1975, focusing particularly on biomass energy. She is a Senior Lecturer with the Technology and Development Group, University of Twente, where she has been based for the last twenty years. She is a founder member of ENERGIA and has written widely on the subject of gender and energy and is a member of the advisory group supporting the energy department in the Netherlands Department for Development Cooperation. Dr Simon Batchelor has worked in development for over 20 years and is currently Director of Gamos Ltd a small consultancy company based in the UK. With a background in agricultural systems, renewable energy and water supplies, Dr Batchelor emphasises the importance of community mobilisation and creative thinking. He works with field agencies in the implementation of community development programmes and in particular in the capacity building of human resources and the social impact of interventions. Glossary Biogas: a combustible gas formed by natural processes of anaerobic digestion, in which microorganisms convert organic material into a gas which has composition and combustion characteristics similar to natural gas. Biogas units are available in household, community, and industrial sizes. Biomass fuel: any organic material of plant or animal origin such as wood, agricultural residues and dung, used as a fuel. Energy: For the purposes of this paper, energy is taken to …