Energy is a fundamental aspect of human existence: it is the principal means for providing access to basic needs such as food and water and it facilitates various opportunities for the achievement of a decent quality of life.
Access to affordable, adequate, and appropriate energy services is therefore a prerequisite for sustainable development, and for achieving the Millenium Development Goals adopted by the governments of the world, including the goal of reducing poverty and hunger.
Perhaps the most critical challenge related to energy for sustainable development is how to increase access to affordable, modern energy services, while also ensuring that the energy services provided do not cause further adverse environmental and socio-economic impacts.
Objectives: This online-training course is intended to provide deeper knowledge of energy’s relationship to sustainable development and how delivery of clean, affordable energy services, wise management of energy resources, and the leveraging of technological and institutional energy related opportunities can serve as instruments to reach that goal. Participants will learn of sustainable energy options, available modes of implementation, local resources required, and the policy and institutional conditions required to operationalise such options.
Why an online energy course? Energy is related to the multidimensional aspects of sustainable development: the social, economic and environmental perspectives. Access to modern energy services is a prerequisite for meeting the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). As a result, development specialists need a comprehensive understanding of the energy/development nexus - not only how energy systems work but also the impact of energy services on other development issues such as income, health and environment.
At the present time, courses tailored to the demands of those who are working on energy issues as a means for development do not exist. Too often, existing courses deal only with technical aspects of energy issues and do not adequately examine their broader implications for sustainable development. Further, there is an increasing need to reach out to a wider range of development actors, especially in developing countries. This need is largely unmet. This course is intended to address the gaps outlined. It will provide a comprehensive coverage on the issues of how energy affects sustainable development. The online format of the course is intended to offer flexibility and reach to those who would have not otherwise been able to take advantage of existing courses.
Target audience: The target audience encompasses development specialists from government, NGOs, multilateral and bilateral Official Development Assistance (ODA) organisations, as well as actors involved in the private sector who are engaged in energy and development activities in developing countries. Participants will typically come from a range of educational and professional backgrounds and will have some years of practical experience. The target audience is broader than merely energy-field experts. It also includes development professionals who may have some insight of energy-related issues but desire a more comprehensive understanding of energy’s role within sustainable development.
Outcomes: The key outcome from this course will be improved understanding of the relationship between energy systems and sustainable development. Upon completion, participants will have significant capacity to conceptualize energy activities – and their link to development issues on the ground. Such skills will allow them to better overcome development challenges encountered in their daily work, and will help build consensus on how energy can be used effectively as a tool for sustainable development. The course will help participants promote energy efficiency and renewables, encourage technologies that offer alternatives for clean and safe energy supply and use, and help find ways for developing countries to avoid the wasteful and destructive stages that have characterised industrialisation in the past. In addition, a formal European university level certification will be granted for requisite European Credit Transfer System (ECTS) credits.
Course description
The E4SD Online Course will be delivered entirely through distance online education. The course will provide in-depth knowledge of energy options within the context of sustainable development. The course is designed to be intensive and requires an average of 80 hours of efforts, spread over 8 weeks.
The 8-week duration E4SD course is designed to serve as a comprehensive introduction to a range of key energy for sustainable development issues. These include the linkages between the provision of energy services and poverty, economic development, health, security and the environment. The topics selected for coverage will allow development specialists to get a first-hand yet in-depth view of key challenges associated with implementing energy for sustainable development in a variety of development related contexts.
The E4SD course’s scope and content is intended to promote deeper understanding of the following issues:
- Linkages between energy, social and development issues such as poverty, gender, urbanization, health, livelihoods and economic development.
- Energy security
- Sustainable management and use of energy resources and energy technologies including renewable energy technologies and advanced energy technologies
- Energy concerns in developing countries including rural energy, and
- Enabling frameworks and policies that promote energy for sustainable development.
The training materials compiled within this course are part of the outreach activities of the World Energy Assessment: Energy and the Challenge of Sustainability (WEA). They are built directly upon the Training Materials on Energy for Sustainable Development: World Energy Assessment Outreach Modules that were developed to disseminate the findings of the WEA. The course session is structured into three sections with four modules each:
Section I - Energy for Sustainable Development
- I-1 Energy and Social Issues
- I-2 Energy, the Environment and Health
- I-3 Energy and Economic Issues
- I-4 Energy Security
Section II - Energy Resources and Technologies
- II-1 Energy Resources
- II-2 Energy End-Use Efficiency
- II-3 Renewable Energy Technologies
- II-4 Advanced Energy Supply Technologies
Section III - Enabling Frameworks and Policies for Sustainable Energy
- III-1 Energy Scenarios
- III-2 Rural Energy
- III-3 Reshaping Markets and Building Capacity
- III-4 Key Policy Areas for Sustainable Development
The E4SD Online Course will involve inter alia: a range of readings, quizzes and self assessment, written assignments, and participation in online discussion forums facilitated by international energy and development experts. Feedback for assignments will be supplied on an individual basis.
Successful completion of the course will lead to a formal European university level certification corresponding to 3 European Credit Transfer System (ECTS) credits.
Course fee: The next session of the E4SD Online Course from 20 April - 14 June 2009 will be offered at no charge to accepted participants.
How to apply
Admission criteria for the Energy for Sustainable Development Online Course (E4SD) This Energy for Sustainable Development Online Course is delivered by the International Institute for Industrial Environmental Economics (IIIEE) at Lund University, Sweden, in collaboration with UNDP, UNEP, and the Global Network on Energy for Sustainable Development (GNESD).
Applicants must fulfil the following entrance requirements:
Applicants must fulfil the following entrance requirements:
- A completed higher secondary certificate / diploma that gives access to universities in the applicant’s home country. The official certificates/ transcripts shall include all subjects taken including marks. If the documents are issued in a language other than Nordic, English, French, Italian, Spanish, German, Russian or Japanese, authorized translations must be enclosed.
- A knowledge of English up to a certain level.
- A minimum of two years of working experience in relevant fields. Relevant fields include areas related to energy supply and demand, infrastructure and economic development, city and land-use planning, agriculture and rural development, environmental protection, poverty alleviation, public health, and gender equity issues.Should you not have this work experience due to external circumstances and / or should you have strong reasons and desire to participate in the course, then please state in a letter (max. 1 page) your motivation as to why you would like to attend the course.
If the number of applicants exceeds the number of available places for the E4SD-Course, applicants will be selected based on the following criteria:
- Relevance and level of the current position and of previous work experience, e.g. from government, NGOs, multilateral and bilateral Official Development Assistance (ODA) businesses and the private sector, who are engaged in energy and development activities in developing countries.
- Motivation statement / letter.
- Relevance of undergraduate studies.
- English skills.
How to apply for admission
To apply for the Foundation Session of the course, please fill and submit the online application form. The deadline for applications is 6th of April.
IMPORTANT: We strongly suggest to read this sample application form first, then to draft your answers offline (e.g. in Word), and then to copy and paste your answers into the online application form. This is due to the reason that the system may kick you out if filling the online form takes too long time.
In addition, please send the following documents to apply@e4sd.org:
- your Curriculum Vitae in electronic form (in English language),
- your motivation letter in electronic form and
- a completed higher secondary education certificate in electronic form (scanned version). If the documents are issued in a language other than Nordic, English, French, Italian, Spanish, German, Russian or Japanese, authorized translations must be enclosed.
Moreinfo: http://www.e4sd.org
