Urbanization and Energy Crisis.

  Source: (ICLEI South Asia, 2007)

Note: Population and Energy Distribution Throughout the World

The figure at left shows the distribution of population in comparison to the distribution of energy across the world.  Clearly, it shows that there is a large imbalance between the percentage of developing countries in the world, which is more than three-quarters of the total population, and the amount of energy those countries use, less than half of the total energy consumption of the world.  

India is currently having issues regarding distribution of their energy resources. Currently, their energy mainly stems from coal-based plants, which has been shown to be very ineffective as far as renewable and clean energy is concerned.  Simultaneously, India is currently facing a surge of urbanization and industrialization across the nation.  This new urbanization could lead to many more issues regarding energy distribution and consumption.  The more urbanized India becomes, the higher the demand will be for easily accessible energy resources.  As India is already struggling with these issues, they will face many more in the future if they do not address the seemingly inevitable crisis facing them in the future. 

One of the issues with urbanization is that it seems to be transforming many developing countries into replicas of the Western World.  In many ways, this is a wonderful thing.  Economically it provides for more opportunities and tends to integrate the nations more smoothly into things like globalized trade, putting them into the mix of the global market place, rather than on the outskirts.  However, there are many negatives that can result from countries becoming “more like the United States.” One of the main problems surrounds energy consumption.  The average person in the world uses an amount equivalent to 2.2 tonnes of coal throughout their lifetime (ICLEI South Asia, 2007).  However, this is distributed across all countries, from the native cultures to the most industrialized.  The disparities between the extremes of this spectrum are astonishing.  In fact, the average American uses about 32 times more energy in their life than the average Indian (ICLEI South Asia, 2007).  As India moves further and further into the process of urbanization, this enormous gap in energy distribution will likely decrease, which will increase the overall energy consumption of the world. 

India is rapidly increasing when it comes to urbanization. Currently, the population is about 30% urban, compared to 1951, when the population was a mere 17% urban (Datta, 2006).  In 2008, India alone accounted for 3.8% of total global consumption of energy (Arora, et al., 2010), yet their country hasn’t even reached 50% urbanization.  Most developed countries are about 70% urban (Datta, 2006).  As India continues to make its way towards becoming a developed country and continues to expand its urban population, the country will undoubtedly increase its energy consumption by large amounts.  Therefore, it is extremely pertinent that India look to renewable resources that benefit not only the environment, but that will also help India in the long run for their growing needs in terms of abundant energy resources.  

One of the benefits of renewable energy is that it doesn’t necessarily depend on a grid system to be effective.  Many rural communities in India are currently seeing plans being implemented that rely heavily on the fact that a central energy infrastructure is unnecessary (Arora, et al., 2010).  In fact, there is a very interesting surge of recycled and renewable energy going through parts of South America and the Philippines that could be well utilized not only by the rural people in India, but also by the slum population (and unless big policy changes are implemented soon, the slum population will continue to grow as people move from rural to urban areas) (Datta, 2006).  The innovation is based on the utilization of liter soda bottles.  They are filled with bleach and water, a hole is cut in the roof of the dwelling and the soda bottle is then secured in this hole.  Thanks to the reaction of the sun and the bleach, this makeshift contraption can give off the equivalent of a 50 watt light bulb.  These “bulbs” are long lasting and very easy to make, an ideal situation for poor and rural people.  For more information on these bulbs and how they are being implemented across the world you can visit this website: http://isanglitrongliwanag.org/ .

While large scale renewable energy efforts are extremely important, small changes are just as crucial.  If individuals can take charge of their own energy needs through practices such as personal water-mills or soda bottle light bulbs, the problems of energy distribution can be largely improved, if not close to solved. 

Works Cited

Arora, D. S., Busche, S., Cowlin, S., Engelmeier, T., Jaritz, H., Milbrandt, A., et al. (2010). Indian Renewable Energy Status Report.

Datta, P. (2006). Urbanisation in India.

ICLEI South Asia. (2007). Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Status in India.