Challenges and opportunities for indigenous

8-10 November 2018 / Hotel Laïco L’Amitié Bamako - Mali

Challenges and opportunities for indigenous Community Power research in Costa Rica Gustavo Richmond-Navarro (speaker) Rolando Madriz-Vargas, Samuel Murillo-Rodríguez Noel Ureña-Sandí, Fabián Barrientos-Johansson Valeria Chavarría-Castillo, Marcelo Chaves-Chacón

[email protected]

Where is Costa Rica? Area (km2) Mali: 1,240,192 CR: 51,100

• 8280 km from Mali Population • Mali: 18 million • CR: 5 million

2° WORLD COMMUNITY POWER CONFERENCE, BAMAKO - MALI

What is Costa Rica? • Coverage of the electric grid reached 99.3% • Only 33,826 people living without electric power • 98% of electricity matrix is supplied by renewable sources • Main university spends $54 million in research

What is Costa Rica?

1768 MW

195 MW

144 MW

38 MW

2 MW

http://www.ticotimes.net/2016/12/16/renewable-electricity-costa-rica

What is Costa Rica?

https://apps.grupoice.com/CenceWeb/CenceMain.jsf on November 07, 2018

What is Costa Rica… if you live here? • Talamanca… for most Costa Ricans. • Duchi (among other names) for them. • Real people living there, many indigenous communities • No electricity, very poor cell phone coverage 2° WORLD COMMUNITY POWER CONFERENCE, BAMAKO - MALI

What is Costa Rica… if you visit us?


Friendship International Park


How does everybody think it is?


How it really is: • There are a few blue points within Talamanca, each one being a school. • It is a completely different civilization inside the country, having its own language, beliefs and social organization 2° WORLD COMMUNITY POWER CONFERENCE, BAMAKO - MALI

How is it?

How is it?


How is it?


How is it?


How is it?


And everybody wants electricity

http://www.radiofeminista.net/mar08/notas/yorkin_1.htm https://www.facebook.com/220320481755761/videos/226359357818540/

The government financial support • The 85th article of Costa Rica’s Political Constitution states the Government must provide funds for the public universities. • The Special Fund for the Public Higher Education (FEES) funded a total of $836 million (1.43% of the Gross Domestic Product) in 2018. • Other laws: 7386 Own Rents, 6890 Cement Tax, 8436 Fishing and Aquaculture, gives more fund to universities. • Law 7169 promotes the scientific and technological development of the country. • The researcher reinsertion program had an amount of $182,000 2° WORLD COMMUNITY POWER CONFERENCE, BAMAKO - MALI

The government financial support • The topics subject to funding, among others: • • • • • •

New materials Advanced computing Environmental management Emerging technologies Mother Earth (Climate Change and related) Vulnerable population

• The researchers are able to apply for funds to develop renewable energy research in remote indigenous areas


Other funding sources • The Tenure Facility is an international institution interested exclusively in securing land and forest rights for Indigenous Peoples and local communities, including in their interest areas Mitigation of climate change. • The Global Innovation Fund invests in social projects, especially finances innovative solutions to the challenges of sustainable development. They define themselves as an investment aimed at improving the lives of the poorest people in developing countries. • Horizon 2020, Green Talents, UNESCO Projects among others options shown in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Worship website 2° WORLD COMMUNITY POWER CONFERENCE, BAMAKO - MALI

What are we doing? • Indigenous women went to India to be trained as “Solar Engineers”, they were illiterate. • Alliance between Barefoot College and UNED. • Each one of them will install 50 solar panels in their remote hometowns. https://www.crhoy.com/nacionales/mujeres-indigenas-aprenderan-a-instalar-paneles-solares/

What are we doing? • ICE is the most aggressive actor. • From 1998 to September 2017, there were 4670 solar panels installed on 383 remote communities. • More than 160 only in 2017 • Used for medical equipment and vaccine refrigeration. • Maintenance in remote areas, is the main challenge. http://gobierno.cr/ice-amplia-a-4-670-la-instalacion-de-paneles-solares-en-sitios-alejados/

What are we doing? • In 2013, ICE installed solar panels for 46 indigenous families in remote areas. • They need electricity not only to watch TV or study at night. • One of the most important uses for electricity is to power cellphones to call for help in case of emergencies, e.g. venomous snakes biting. • Solar panels rescue them from isolation http://www.perezzeledon.net/paneles-solares-rescatan-a-indigenas-del-aislamiento/

What are we doing? • Project “Lights for learning in Costa Rica”: • 8 rural schools obtained electricity through solar panels. • Funds from Organization of Ibero-American States (OEI) coordinated by the Ministry of Public Education of Costa Rica • Amount invested $250,000 https://www.mep.go.cr/noticias/8-escuelas-rurales-cuentan-electricidad-mediante-energia-solar

Conclusions The two main challenges to materialize community power are: • Engage the interest and involvement of more researchers, who decide to bet on rural electrification projects in indigenous areas and apply for the funding alternatives described in this work. • Develop a real and stable link between researchers and community leaders, so that local people get involved, from their capacities, in the management, development and implementation of rural electrification projects.


Acknowledgments • Instituto Tecnológico de Costa Rica (TEC) • Universidad de Costa Rica (UCR) • Professors Orlando Arrieta and Pedro Casanova, from UCR • Mali-Folkecenter Nyetaa, Special thanks to Johanna Togola • Tom Burrell (ACCESS) • All the sponsors that made possible to cover the trip to Mali • LIENE: Laboratorio de Investigación en Energía Eólica • Programa UNA-Renovables 2° WORLD COMMUNITY POWER CONFERENCE, BAMAKO - MALI

8-10 November 2018 / Hotel Laïco L’Amitié Bamako - Mali

Challenges and opportunities for indigenous Community Power research in Costa Rica Gustavo Richmond-Navarro (speaker) Rolando Madriz-Vargas, Samuel Murillo-Rodríguez Noel Ureña-Sandí, Fabián Barrientos-Johansson Valeria Chavarría-Castillo, Marcelo Chaves-Chacón

[email protected]