Renewable Energy Research In Science

After a week in Malawi and Zambia — visiting the households, farms, schools and clinics at the frontier of off-grid solar — I came home more convinced than ever that the right capital, matched to the right problem and deployed with discipline, is what separates good intentions from real change. I was there with a small group of development finance leaders, investors and philanthropists, all part of Acumen's Hardest-to-Reach initiative to bring off-grid solar to 17 sub-Saharan countries. What binds us is a shared conviction: solar electrification in Africa's most challenging energy markets is one of the great opportunities of this century. Here's some of what we saw: ∙ A farmer in Zambia who used a single solar irrigation pump to grow maize, beans, sugar cane, tomatoes and lemon trees — nearly tripling his income in two years. He and his wife used those earnings to buy a motorbike, then open a kiosk, then buy a television, just in time to charge neighbors to watch the World Cup. ∙ A nurse who once had to turn away women in labor through the long hours of load shedding. With solar, she no longer does. ∙ Yellow, one of the Hardest-to-Reach investees, operates in one of the world's most difficult markets. It built a $5-a-month solar product and an agent network rooted in trust — and this month will reach more than a million Malawians, moving the country's electrification rate by roughly 5 percentage points. None of this is charity. These are real businesses, run by sophisticated entrepreneurs, in conditions that would break many: weak currencies, thin margins, difficult roads, fragile customer incomes, constant policy uncertainty. In most cases, they are building energy markets from scratch. But markets don't automatically reach the hardest to reach. They have to be shaped to do so — and that shaping requires the right capital. What does that look like in practice? Philanthropy takes the earliest risk. Concessional capital lowers the cost of reaching the most remote customers. Guarantees and first-loss structures bring in the development banks and private investors who would otherwise stay away. Local currency lending absorbs the foreign exchange risk that quietly kills otherwise viable businesses. Commercial capital belongs where the model is proven. Patient capital belongs where the market is still being built. This is not soft money — and it is certainly not stupid money. At its best, catalytic capital is the most disciplined capital there is. It absorbs the risk others won't take, proves the demand, builds the systems and then steps back so markets can stand on their own. Some 700 million people still live without electricity. The demand is there. The businesses are there. What's needed now is the capital architecture to make markets work for people who are already working hard to solve their own problems.

You think Silicon Valley is the future of climate tech? You couldn’t be more wrong... The most meaningful progress is happening far from the venture bubble, in small labs, research stations, and community workshops where the focus is on solving practical problems rather than chasing scale. 2025 has been a record year for climate tech investment. But the real story isn’t how much money is being raised. It’s what that money is building. The direction of innovation is shifting toward systems that are modular, verifiable, and built for real-world conditions. These technologies can be deployed quickly, maintained locally, and adapted to places that can’t wait for large infrastructure to arrive. 🌱 Releaf Earth (YC 2025) converts food waste into biochar that restores soil, locks carbon, and produces renewable power for local microgrids. Their portable reactors make it possible for small communities to build their own carbon markets. Biochar now accounts for more than 90 percent of all durable carbon removals delivered globally, showing how central this technology has become to practical decarbonization. 🌱 Modular Green Hydrogen startups in programs such as RMI’s accelerator are proving that hydrogen production doesn’t have to rely on billion-dollar plants. Their systems use renewables and recycled water to power rural transport and small industries, aligning closely with the U.S. 45Q incentive for low-carbon hydrogen. 🌱 Recyclable wind turbines built from bio-resins and nanocellulose are beginning to close the loop on renewable energy. They address a long-standing issue in the sector, how to manage the waste created when turbine blades reach the end of their life. 🌱 Bamboo-based cooling panels, now emerging from university and startup labs, use natural condensation to lower indoor temperatures without electricity. Early trials in Asia and Africa suggest they could offer low-cost cooling in regions already struggling with extreme heat and limited access to power. 🌱 AI and satellite mapping tools from companies such as Astraea are providing live, high-resolution data on climate risks. What used to take months of modeling can now be updated continuously, helping governments, insurers, and local planners make faster, better decisions. These examples point to a wider shift. Climate technology is no longer defined by size or spectacle. It is defined by systems that are reliable, measurable, and designed for real contexts. Policies like the European Union’s Carbon Removal Certification Framework are reinforcing this trend, directing investment toward solutions that can demonstrate genuine and lasting impact. The next phase of climate innovation will not be driven by how much it raises or how fast it scales. It will be judged by how well it works, consistently, locally, and over time.

Yesterday, I saw what tomorrow holds for India—a future growing on the land of Mr. Nirmal Das Swami, a farmer in Rajasthan.   Through a government program, Nirmal transformed his 9 hectares of farmland into a solar powerhouse, generating 1.04 megawatts of clean energy.    The impact? Beyond his crops and income, it’s lighting up his entire community:   → Salim, a welding business owner, doubled his working hours and revenue—hiring 6 new workers. → Firoz, a flour mill owner, increased daily production from 500 to 1,000 kg and is employing more people. → Women farmers like Gita, Anju, and Ghisi no longer have to wake up in the middle of the night, the only time power was previously available, to irrigate their crops.   Daytime power has replaced erratic nighttime electricity, enabling livelihoods to thrive.   Rajasthan is proof that changing energy changes lives, especially in rural India.   Today, India is betting big on a just energy transition—by deploying 500 gigawatts of renewable energy by 2030.    So far, they’ve achieved over 200 GW. Partnerships like the Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet (GEAPP), of which The Rockefeller Foundation is a member, are paving the way for even greater innovation and impact. For example, GEAPP is supporting 59 solar plants like Nirmal’s, providing 108 megawatts in support of 30,000 farms and enhancing 64,000 jobs across Rajasthan.   This kind of work doesn’t just transform lives—it transforms entire communities.   This is more than a story of one village. This is the future of India.

When the grid failed, these Amazon communities built their own power 💡 Near Brazil’s Belo Monte dam, one of the world’s largest hydropower projects, the promise of abundant electricity has proved uneven. A household survey of 500 families in Altamira found that 86.8% experienced higher electricity costs after the plant began operating in 2016. Many riverside residents still endure outages, pay steep tariffs, or rely on diesel generators. As Emilio Moran, a social anthropologist at Michigan State University, observed, “People are right under the transmission line, but the energy doesn’t come from that hydroelectric plant.” For some communities deeper in the Amazon, waiting for grid expansion has yielded little. In the Tapajós-Arapiuns Reserve near Santarém, researchers and residents have instead built small, independent energy networks, reports Jorge C. Carrasco. Launched in 2023, the pilot combines solar panels with hydrokinetic turbines placed in river currents. The aim, said project coordinator Lázaro Santos, is straightforward: “that we bring energy to contribute to improving the quality of life of these communities.” The hybrid design addresses the limits of each technology. Solar output varies with daylight, while river turbines generate power continuously. For villages long dependent on diesel, the shift has been tangible. One resident recalled that fuel deliveries required multi-day boat trips, and electricity was rationed to a few evening hours. Today, a communal freezer runs around the clock, enabling food storage and modest commerce. Internet access and emergency communications have also improved. Crucially, the project trained local technicians to operate and repair the equipment. Three residents in one village can now maintain the system themselves. This emphasis on autonomy reflects a broader lesson: infrastructure need not arrive fully formed from outside to be effective. Several practical insights emerge: ⚡ Small, modular systems can deliver reliable power where large grids are slow or costly to extend. ⚡ Combining energy sources reduces vulnerability to weather or seasonal change. ⚡ Local training builds resilience and lowers long-term operating costs. ⚡ Shared assets, such as community freezers, can spread benefits even when generation is modest. The initiative currently serves about 200 people, with plans to expand. It does not resolve the wider inequities associated with large dams. Yet it suggests that communities facing resource constraints are not without options. With technical support and local organization, incremental solutions can materially improve daily life while larger debates over energy policy continue. 📰 https://lnkd.in/gU_XcVNB

𝐎𝐧𝐞 𝐚𝐜𝐫𝐞. 𝐓𝐰𝐨 𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐯𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐬. 𝐅𝐨𝐨𝐝 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐨𝐢𝐥, 𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐠𝐲 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐮𝐧; 𝐣𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐯𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐫𝐨𝐨𝐟. India already hosts 19% of the global population but holds only 2.4% of the world's land. We cannot afford single-use ecosystems. Dual-purpose innovations like these let us produce food and power from the same soil without compromise. India’s journey toward becoming a global clean energy powerhouse doesn't rest only on megaprojects or capital-intensive solar parks. Sometimes, the most powerful models emerge from the most grounded realities like a 16-acre farm in Sagar, Madhya Pradesh, where crops grow under a solar canopy, and electricity flows into the state grid above. This isn’t about one success story but it’s about a national opportunity. As India aims to achieve 280 GW of solar energy by 2030, we must rethink land use, farmer incomes, and infrastructure synergy. 𝐀𝐠𝐫𝐢𝐯𝐨𝐥𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐜𝐬 - 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐝𝐮𝐚𝐥-𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐟𝐚𝐫𝐦𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐛𝐨𝐭𝐡 𝐜𝐫𝐨𝐩 𝐜𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐬𝐨𝐥𝐚𝐫 𝐩𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫 offers India a sustainable, scalable path to energy security, rural employment, and climate resilience. The farm generates approximately 25,000 kWh of electricity daily, fed directly into the state grid, while producing high-value crops like strawberries, broccoli, tomatoes, and lettuce in the partial shade. This dual model has emerged as a tangible response to India’s clean energy targets without displacing agriculture, a growing concern in many ground-mounted solar parks. What we saw on Anand Jain’s farm was proof-of-concept: elevated solar panels generating 25,000 kWh daily, while crops like lettuce and tomatoes thrive beneath. But imagine this replicated across thousands of acres in Punjab, Maharashtra, Gujarat, and Rajasthan, where sunlight is abundant and farming needs economic revival. Government schemes like PM-KUSUM and initiatives from MNRE offer the right framework. But what we now need is collaboration: 🔸 Corporate framing where agribusinesses, EPC companies, and solar developers co-invest in farm-based solar infrastructure. 🔸 Fintech and NBFC involvement to offer tailored financing for farmer-led solar adoption. 🔸 R&D-driven partnerships with institutions like IITs, IARI, and NABARD to refine crop-solar coexistence models. 🔸 Startups innovating with IoT, panel cleaning automation, energy storage, and precision farming under solar sheds. 🔸 State and central governments pushing policies for faster PPA approvals, feed-in tariffs, and awareness drives. The stakes go beyond sustainability. It’s about making India a global leader in agritech and clean energy integration, driving rural economic growth, and showing the world that development doesn’t have to come at the cost of nature or people. #agritech #solarenergy #indianfarmers #agricultureland #fintech #nbfc #solarpanel #punjab #gujarat #rajasthan

A few years ago, while travelling in remote rural Maharashtra, I was surprised to cross a farm where a local family was using a solar pump to irrigate their fields. I couldn’t help but ask what prompted them to switch from diesel or electric pumps to solar, and learnt about the region’s ongoing transition towards sustainable irrigation. Given how closely tourism intersects with agriculture and the well-being of local communities, I’m always curious to hear about clean energy solutions. So when MSEDCL reached out to me recently about their record-breaking deployment of solar pumps (45,000 in a month!), it felt worth celebrating! 👉 Conventionally, electricity is supplied to farmers on the grid at highly subsidized costs. Switching to solar pumps allows power distribution companies (DISCOMS) to reduce costs, electricity use and load on the grid. 👉 Off-grid farmers conventionally used diesel generators to pump water for irrigation, bearing the heavy cost of diesel, which is also a huge source of carbon emissions. Solar pumps improve their livelihoods and the planet’s well-being. 👉 Solar pumps can (and must) be paired with water-saving irrigation techniques like drip irrigation, to improve water use efficiency, especially in water-stressed areas. 👉 This is a great case study for the large scale implementation of clean energy technologies in India, and their potential to become a win-win for local communities and the planet. What are climate solutions you’ve come across that also strongly support local livelihoods? #solarirrigation #solarpumps #sustainableagriculture

This man in the photo was walking through rural Karnataka one day when he saw something that changed his life forever. 🥹 Children studying under the weak glow of kerosene lamps. 🥹 Mothers cooking in the dark. 🥹 Health workers struggling to treat patients after sunset. It was a scene most people would accept as “normal” in rural India. But Harish Hande couldn’t look away. What struck him most was the irony that there was sunlight in abundance, yet energy was scarce. The problem wasn’t lack of light. It was lack of access. That day, an idea began to take shape.. one that would go on to illuminate hundreds of thousands of lives. A graduate in Energy Engineering from IIT Kharagpur and a PhD holder from the University of Massachusetts, Dr. Hande could have chosen a comfortable academic or corporate career abroad. Instead, he chose the dusty roads of India’s villages and founded SELCO Foundation, a social enterprise that would redefine how we think about power, poverty and progress. His mission was simple yet radical: 𝐓𝐨 𝐦𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐬𝐨𝐥𝐚𝐫 𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐠𝐲 𝐚𝐜𝐜𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐛𝐥𝐞, 𝐚𝐟𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐝𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐞𝐦𝐩𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐬𝐞 𝐦𝐨𝐬𝐭 𝐨𝐟𝐭𝐞𝐧 𝐥𝐞𝐟𝐭 𝐛𝐞𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐝. Over time, SELCO’s impact has been extraordinary: - 𝐌𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐧 7 𝐥𝐚𝐤𝐡 𝐫𝐮𝐫𝐚𝐥 𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐬𝐞𝐡𝐨𝐥𝐝𝐬 𝐩𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐝 𝐛𝐲 𝐜𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐧 𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐠𝐲. - 10,000+ 𝐬𝐜𝐡𝐨𝐨𝐥𝐬 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐬𝐭𝐮𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐬 𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐬𝐭𝐮𝐝𝐲 𝐛𝐞𝐲𝐨𝐧𝐝 𝐝𝐚𝐲𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐬. - 𝐇𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐫𝐞𝐝𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐡 𝐜𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐞𝐬 𝐧𝐨𝐰 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐯𝐢𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐬𝐚𝐟𝐞, 𝐫𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐜𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐧 𝐚𝐟𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐝𝐚𝐫𝐤. But beyond these numbers lies something deeper - dignity and independence. Dr. Hande believes that energy poverty is not just a technical issue, it’s a social injustice. And that the answer lies not in charity but in innovation with empathy. Through his work and junoon, he’s shown the world that sustainability and equity can go hand in hand. Because when one person chooses to see light where others see limits, change becomes inevitable. #socialimpact #sustainability #renewableenergy #leadership #innovation #india #changemakers #inspiration

Solar+BESS is already cheaper than diesel gensets in off-grid applications in Indonesia. The challenge in Indonesia is not the policy intent, but the ability to implement effectively. "The distributed solar for energy self-sufficiency program encompasses 80 GW of solar that will be deployed as 1 MW solar arrays with 4 MWh of accompanying battery energy storage systems (BESS). These solar-plus-storage mini grids are set to be installed in 80,000 villages across Indonesia and will be managed and operated by village cooperative Merah Putih. The initiative also includes plans for 20 GW of centralized solar power plants, featuring both on-grid and off-grid installations. It is envisaged the project will support household energy demand and promote productive economic activities in rural areas. Fabby Tumiwa, Chief Executive Officer of the Jakarta-based Institute for Essential Services Reform (IESR), told pv magazine that solar-plus-BESS generates cheaper electricity than the diesel power plants that power villages and remote islands in Indonesia. “The estimated levelized cost of electricity (LCOE) for this system is about $0.12 to $0.15/kWh over the next 25 years, compared to $0.20 to $0.40/kWh for a diesel generator,” Tumiwa explained. “If implemented effectively, this project will become the largest rural electrification initiative and distributed renewable energy generation program in Southeast Asia, addressing the challenges of providing quality, equitable, and affordable energy for all Indonesians,” Tumiwa added. Tumiwa also said that building 100 GW of solar in five years is going to be “very challenging”. He told pv magazine the institute has several recommendations for supporting the project, including developing skilled workers for solar installations by collaborating with universities and vocational schools in each province, offering training for operations and maintenance and bulk procurement activities, and providing blended finance to fund the program." https://lnkd.in/g7vfYPnK

Remember SRK as Mohan Bhargav in Swades? Travelling to rural Karnataka, you can meet the real life Mohan who is lighting up people’s lives! Meet Harish Hande - the man who is fighting energy poverty in India. Like in Swades, Harish once brought light to a home in rural Karnataka that had never seen a light bulb in 53 years of independence. It led to the development of an entire village eventually producing a state exam topper. Harish Hande is a trailblazing social entrepreneur, IITian, and founder of SELCO - a social venture that puts solar power technology in the hands of the poor. His initial spark came from a signboard at the IIT Kharagpur campus entrance that read: "To serve the nation” As a student passing it daily, Harish kept asking, "Which nation?" By the end of his course, he found the answer but did not know how to go about it. While pursuing his PhD from the University of Massachusetts in the US, Harish met Richard Hansen from the Dominican Republic, who had successfully implemented an energy-sustainable model. Inspired, Harish wanted to replicate it back home and change the lives of low-income households. After initial work, Harish lived across rural Karnataka for 1.5 years to finally set up Solar Electric Light Company (SELCO) in 1995. As a social entrepreneur, Harish faced many technical and social hurdles. - Villagers couldn't afford the cost of solar lighting units  - Energy needs of each consumer varied These problems forced Harish to convince bankers to give loans and also do extensive field work and research to overcome technical problems. Today, SELCO has successfully installed 2 million solar lighting units and has over 60 branches all over India. Many awards came Harish's way, including the prestigious Magsaysay Award. As someone who felt the pulse of rural India, Harish strongly believes that the financial divide can be reduced only if the poor are considered as asset creators. India needs more people like Harish Hande who are willing to forego an easy career path overseas as an NRI to ensure India’s place in the sun. Mela Ram in Swades sums up this spirit beautifully when he refuses to go to the US by saying “Apni chaukhat ka diya, giving light to neighbour's house”. P.S. Smita and I have had the good fortune of getting mentored by Harish Hande who showed Rang De the right path towards making affordable credit a possibility for the poor. #SolutionsForThePoor #SolarPower #TechForGood

🔋 SOLAR EVOLUTION: FROM SILICON TO TITANIUM ☀️ The solar industry is undergoing a silent but powerful transformation. ✅ From Mono PERC to HJT and TOPCon ✅ From silicon cells to bifacial gain and tandem efficiency ✅ And now… to next-gen breakthroughs like Perovskite and Titanium–Selenium solar modules from Japan, promising up to 30–35% efficiency with corrosion resistance and lower material cost. Here’s how the solar landscape is shifting: 🌞 Current Tech (2025) ▪️ Mono PERC → Reliable, cost-effective ▪️ TOPCon → Better bifaciality, N-type power ▪️ HJT → Premium efficiency, low degradation ▪️ Bifacial Systems → Smart gains from albedo 🚀 Emerging Tech (2028–30) ▪️ Perovskite–Silicon Tandems → Flexible, printable, 28%+ lab efficiency ▪️ Titanium–Selenium Panels → Abundant materials, high power density, Japan’s cutting-edge innovation ▪️ Organic PV, Quantum Dots → Building-integrated, niche futuristic roles ♻️ What’s Changing? 🔹 Shift from rare & toxic to abundant, recyclable materials 🔹 Focus on lightweight, flexible, glass-integrated solar 🔹 Race to build next-gen panels for AI, data centers & urban facades 🇮🇳 India is not behind. IIT Kanpur, IIT Bombay, and NCPRE are working on non-toxic perovskite solar, transparent solar glass, and circular energy solutions — paving the way for a more sustainable and self-reliant future. As a renewable energy entrepreneur, I believe the next big disruption will come not just from cost — but from material science, design integration, and sustainable sourcing. 📈 Are you tracking how fast your panels will become legacy hardware? Let’s power the future with smarter choices. #SolarEnergy #TitaniumSolar #Perovskite #HJT #TOPCon #Sustainability #Renewables #CleanTech #AtaruRenewPower #Innovation #FutureOfEnergy Bhavita Shukla , Akashsingh Rajput , Nisarg Bhavsar , Dr. Hitesh Doshi , Avaada Electro , Relaince Industries Limited , Adani Solar , Cecil Augustine , Panasonic India , Havells India Ltd , Polycab India Limited , Hitachi Energy , Aalok Chokshi , RenewSys India Pvt. Ltd. , ReNew , Samir Patel - BE Mech. MBA, CE , Siddharth Shah