SEDV Students Support United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goal with Capstone Project

In support of the United Nation’s sustainable development goal number seven (affordable and clean energy) four SEDV students, in collaboration with a local non-profit the Strongest Oak, are developing a socio-economic model and technical design for a scalable, modular renewable solar energy hub in Burkina Faso, West Africa. As part of their capstone project, and with faculty and industry support, Lucas Barr, Tinu Chineme, Andrea Cosgrove and Spencer Illingworth, each occupy a different role on the project, with a shared goal to provide the community with access to clean and affordable electricity.

Burkina Faso is home to over 19 million people, 40% of which live below the poverty line. The country is extremely underserved – the World Bank estimates almost 97% of the rural population does not have access to reliable and/or clean electricity, which is a key determinant of quality of life.

The renewable power hub being reviewed by the SEDV students will be located in the remote village of Pa, home to just over 8500 people. The off-grid system design will fit the needs of the village. As such, the SEDV group focused on building relationships with and leveraging the local village people, elders and mayor through surveys, community meetings and one-on-one interviews to gain valuable information on their local customs, social environment and needs of the community. In addition, they engaged Burkinabè students from the University of Ouagadougou to assist with gathering project data.

Environmental, economic and social impacts of the project will be considered under the framework of the five capitals model to ensure the village has the capacity to make the project a success. Long-term goals of the project include increased youth literacy, increased economic activity within the village and improved living standards of the community.

The students are making excellent progress on the conceptual design and parameters of their project. Project participants have successfully raised and continue to seek funds with the hope of a fully financed implementation in fall 2018.

These students, including three project volunteers from the SEDV program (Humaira Waqar, Cinthya Ferrer, and Faisal Khan), received the Community as a Learning Partner award at the tenth annual University of Calgary Sustainability Awards for their positive contributions to the sustainable future of the university and the broader community.

Congratulations to those involved in the Burkina Faso project. An ideal location for a worthy cause!