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Full-Text Articles in Urban Studies and Planning
Insights From An Energy Poor Rwandan Village, Terry Van Gevelt, C. Canales Holzeis, B. Jones, M.T. Safdar
Insights From An Energy Poor Rwandan Village, Terry Van Gevelt, C. Canales Holzeis, B. Jones, M.T. Safdar
Research Collection College of Integrative Studies
We used primary data collected from 163 households in an off-grid Rwandan village to provide insights into energy poverty at the household-level. Informed by the rural livelihoods literature, we constructed a novel asset- and income-based index to disaggregate our results by socio-economic status. We also employed microeconometric techniques to investigate the determinants of household willingness-to-pay for electricity. We found statistically significant differences between households of different socio-economic status for expenditure on lighting and other electricity services, willingness-to-pay for electricity, income-generating activities and food security. Overall, our findings suggest that initiatives aiming to end energy poverty and catalyze rural development should: …
Precolonial Institutions And Deforestation In Africa, S. Larcom, Terry Van Gevelt, A. Zabala
Precolonial Institutions And Deforestation In Africa, S. Larcom, Terry Van Gevelt, A. Zabala
Research Collection College of Integrative Studies
We find that local institutions inherited from the precolonial era continue to play an important role in natural resource governance in Africa. Using satellite image data, we find a significant and robust relationship between deforestation and precolonial succession rules of local leaders (local chiefs). In particular, we find that those precolonial areas where local leaders were appointed by ‘social standing’ have higher rates of deforestation compared to the base case of hereditary rule and where local leaders were appointed from above (by paramount chiefs). While the transmission mechanisms behind these results are complex, we suggest that areas where local leaders …