India Climate Exchange

A couple of days ago, I had the opportunity of listening to Thomas Cushing, Vice President of Chicago Climate Exchange. He was speaking at an event organized by NAEM.

I always knew CCX was the epicenter of all voluntary carbon trading in the United States. I however didn't fully realize the scale of their current operations. When it started trading back in 2003 with a handful of members, it was at best considered a quirky little thing. 4 Earth Days later, the membership has grown several folds to well over 200. They now have a presence in Europe and Canada as well. February 2007 trading volume (US) was 3.17 million metric tons of CO2. As of Feb 2007, 19.3 million metric tons of CO2 had been traded. At about 3.30$ per metric ton that sure is a lot of money!

This kind of growth for something that is purely voluntary is nothing but spectacular! No wonder Goldman Sachs decided to buy a 10% stake. Mr. Cushing was quick to point out that carbon could become the single largest traded commodity in the world. Larger than crude oil!

If you are wondering as to how carbon trading works, here is a little from their site.

CCX Members with direct emissions commit to reduce GHG emissions 1% per year over the years 2003 through 2006 relative to a 1998 through 2001 average. During 2006 program-wide net emissions must be 4% below baseline. Those members that reduce their emissions below the
required level can sell surplus emission allowances on the exchange or bank them. A member that cannot achieve the reduction target internally can meet its compliance commitment by purchasing emission allowances through CCX’s electronic trading platform from other CCX Members that reduce their emissions beyond the reduction target, or purchase project-based offsets. Eligible offsets can come from methane collection and carbon sequestration projects.

After Europe and Canada, CCX is now looking at starting operations in India. Back in 2006, CCX had announced a partnership with TERI. TERI helped register Indian offset projects. These projects were however traded here in Chicago. Now with the help of TERI, CCX is looking to set up an entire Climate Exchange in India. This would help bring Indian companies into the fold of carbon reductions and open up a domestic market in carbon offsets.

All indications are that US will soon regulate carbon emissions and in most likelihood it will be in the form of Cap & Trade. This shift in US policy to some extent is due to the success of CCX. I believe the formation of India Climate Exchange will help steer Indian policy makers also in the right direction.

I agree with the argument that Global Warming is a mess created by industrialized nations. However, India can no longer afford to stick to that line. While rich nations have to do some serious work, India also needs to do it's part. This op-ed piece in Hindu said it best

If it[India] pursues what is "fair" in a warming world by continuing to argue that industrialised nation are to blame and need to take urgent action, it will be placing the noose around its own neck while the hangman looks on [via Yodha]

So when is India Climate Exchange coming online? Mr. Cushing replied, "As soon as possible. May be later this year. May be early next year".

Energy Globe Awards

Two projects in India (among the many interesting projects) have won the Energy Globe awards for sustainability.

India Solar Loan Program: UNEP teamed up with Canara Bank & Syndicate Bank to set up lending mechanisms for Solar lighting systems in South India. The project was launched in 2003 and to date, 18,000 households who did not have access to grid electricity have been able to get financing for solar panels. The UNEP press release mentions how this has helped Canara and Syndicate Bank develop a clean energy lending portfolio and also how it helped the Indian PV industry increase market penetration.



This is a great story and it reinforces my earlier thoughts on bringing micro finance and carbon offsets together for greater access to clean energy.






Public toilet assistance for biogas plant:
Sulabh Sanitation gets the award for it's human waste to biogas project.

In Shirdi in Maharashtra, Sulabh has constructed the largest public toilet with biological gas production in the world. Up to thirty thousand people can use the toilet complex per day. The project contributes to a sustainable energy supply using renewable energy source as well as to immensely contributing to the improvement of the hygienic situation. [Energy Globe]

The awards list makes for a very interesting and heartening read. Do head over there if you get a chance.

One thing I didn't quite understand is why Peabody Mining would win an award for its operations in Black Mesa. If you read this NY Times article, you get a very different picture! (registration required)

via UNEP :: via Indic View

SRI Funds in India

It has been over a year since Rajni Bakshi talked about Socially Responsible Investing (SRI) at the National Stock Exchange (NSE), Mumbai. She urged NSE to set up a sustainability index, similar to the Dow Jones Sustainability Index and FTSE4Good. I couldn't agree more with her point that a sustainability index would bring clarity and form to the SRI landscape in India. It can move sustainability to the Indian mainstream.

Last year, I asked her if she was seeing any movement towards an index or for that matter if investment firms were indeed moving to set up SRI Funds in India. She replied saying there were faint rumblings but nothing concrete.

A couple of days ago, I came across this piece of news. The European asset management firm Robeco and Canara bank announced a joint venture. As part of this venture, SAM (Sustainable Asset Management) the Swiss subsidiary of Robeco will offer a SRI fund by the end of 2007.

Canara Robeco JV will bring into the Indian market clean technology, smart energy and water products. Sam has tremendous expertise in this segment and we hope to launch our products by end of this year. Sam's products are sold in Australia, China and Japan.

We are very bullish on our sustainability fund. The Indian market is in the beginning of the growth stage and there is tremendous potential for growth

I think this is a good beginning. For environmentally conscious, risk averse and lazy investors like me (too lazy to do active trading) this is great news. I hope NSE will show some leadership and work towards a sustainability index.

Update: ABM AMRO has also started a sustainability fund [via email, Rajni Bakshi]

Laurie Baker passes away

Laurie Baker passed away today.

A great architect, a great man, a very tall man, a Gandhian and above all a great Indian. May his soul rest in peace and may we all someday live in houses inspired by his principles.

PS: Indian Writing has an excellent post here

Solar Auto Rickshaw

Sheel finds this interesting solar auto rickshaw during his trip to Bangalore.

I couldn’t find the driver so I don’t know full details - but there are solar cells all over the thing. I’d find it hard to believe that it runs entirely on solar power… my guess is that you plug it into the wall at night and the solar power just helps to recharge. Very cool nonetheless… I wonder if it makes fiscal sense to unleash these all over the country… It’d be an awesome thing from a pollution standpoint, as I think rickshaws are a pretty big contributor to pollution in cities in India.

[via Sheel Mohnot]

I have never heard of a solar rickshaw before. A bit of googling revealed this and this.

Anyone heard/seen one of these before ?

Micro-Finance & Solar Lighting

This idea has been jumping in my head for some time now. I wanted to make sure my idea was viable before I posted it. But I can't hold it back anymore. Here goes....

Many of you might have already heard of the delightfully cool Kiva.org. An idea that is so simple and yet so powerful. It brings together the power of Internet and micro-finance to change lives all over the world. I am proud to say that I am a loaner!

Kiva is currently finalizing its micro-finance field partnerships in India. I believe they are looking at SKS India and GrameenKoota. As soon as the Reserve Bank of India clearance comes through, we will start seeing entrepreneurs from India listed on the site. It could be as early as end of March/ beginning of April 2007.

I have mentioned SuryaBijlee before. Alumni from Indian Institute of Technology are behind it. They are a Non-Profit trust and their mission is to bring affordable solar lighting to rural homes. They use the latest Amorphous Silicion technologies for their arrays and ultra efficient LED for lighting. SuryaBijlee depends entirely on donations for new installations. A little from their website...

For the millions of villagers, life comes to a grinding halt at sunset — with no electricity, there is no light, so no ability to work or study or play. Having spent the major part of the day in the fields, the villagers can do little in the darkness. There is no light for children to study or for any family entertainment.
India has over 140 Million Rural Homes. Out of this some 87 Million still burn kerosene for lighting. Each family consumes between 100-150 liters of kerosene per annum.Each liter of kerosene generates 2.6 kgs of Carbon Dioxide. Annually, this is over 22 million tons of pollution

So here is my idea... bring together Kiva, SuryaBijlee and carbon offset providers like TerraPass together. A single home lighting system costs about 60$. Kiva lenders fund the project. SuryaBijlee executes the project and does the necessary installations. The villagers repay it over a period of time. If we can get TerraPass to fund a part of the project, the repayment amount can be cut by that much. Would make it even more affordable and attractive.

Jasjeet Singh from SuryaBijlee is on board. I am yet to hear back from Sheel Mohnot, Kiva's SouthAsian Partnership Manager. I will pitch this idea to folks at TerraPass also.

What say you? Make any sense ?

PS: South Africa is already doing something similar. As per their calculations, families can afford to repay the loans over 1 year from money saved not having to buy candles and paraffin.

President Kalam and Siruthuli

It is always refreshing to listen to President Kalam. Last year, in his Republic day address he spoke at length about India's energy dependence and the way towards energy independence. This year he touches on a wider variety of developmental issues. Two things caught my attention this time.





First is the project Siruthuli -Clean Kovai, Green Kovai. A grassroots project started by Coimbatoreans to help the city be green again. Plans include large scale rain water harvesting, reconnecting canals created during the Chera period, waste management and afforestation. Present day Coimbatore suffers from water shortage and ground water contamination. Friends of mine from Coimbatore will surely find this effort very encouraging. For those not familiar with Coimbatore, it is a city in the southern state of Tamil Nadu, India. Once known for its pleasant climate and sweet water.

Secondly, President's take on the environment. He says,

Environment can become clean and upgraded only through the country wide active participation of citizens. People as a team can participate in cleaning the environment
..
Industrialists should follow the prescribed norms for environmental standards in all their institutions and make the buildings friendly to differently challenged people. Government employees should keep their offices and their environment clean as they would like to keep their homes. Parents and teachers should teach about the need for environmental friendly requirements to the younger citizens. Citizens can plant trees and nurture them in their neighborhood every year as a mission.
...
It is the responsibility of all the stakeholders including the citizens to promote cleanliness in all these public facilities.

I agree every Indian needs to be involved, but isn't it a little naive to leave everything to good intentions? I feel India needs a powerful Environment Protection agency. Not the Bush diluted version of US EPA. But an agency with teeth. The kind that can take on industrialists, politicians and citizens alike. IndiaTogether.org recently reported of an Indian Railways effort to extend railway lines into sensitive ecological areas without proper environment clearance. Such things happen because people know they can get away with it.

If all of India is to come together to improve our environment, there first needs to a strong and transparent regulatory framework.

Having said that, one cannot ignore the power of grassroots. It is estimated that India has about 1 - 2 million NGOs. I came across Project Green Hands recently (Hat tip: Anand). ISHA foundation planted over 7 lakh saplings across Tamil Nadu over a period of 3 days. Possibly setting a Guinness record. They plan to break that record this year in October.

You can read President's entire speech here

Environment and Poverty: two worlds or one ?

focus on the poor brings us solidly into one of the most important connections -that between poverty and the environment - which deserve much greater attention right now. Central to this linkage is the question that I have tried to capture -very imperfectly I am afraid, for it is a hugely complex connection - in the title of my talk, environment and poverty: two worlds or one?

That was Nobel laureate Amartya Sen speaking at the International Conference on Energy Environment & Development held in Bangalore last month, organized by TERI, Veolio Environment Institute & IDDRI.

The proponents of poverty reduction through economic development have always been squared off against the greens who rally for environment and conservation. The greens are seen as anti development. The vast majority of blog spats these days are just that. Dr Sen says there is no reason to fight.

This extraordinarily confrontational view is I believe, fundamentally erroneous and misconceived. This becomes particularly clear if one sees development in adequately broad terms, seeing it foundationally as the expansion of human freedom. In this broader perspective, the assessment of development cannot be divorced from the lives that people can lead and the real freedoms that they can enjoy.

Development can scarcely be seen merely in terms of enhancement of inanimate objects of convenience, such as a rise in the GNP (or in personal incomes), or industrialisation, or technological advance, or social modernization. These are no doubt valuable - often critically important -accomplishments, but their value must depend on what they do to the lives and freedoms of the people involved. We have reason to distinguish between what, ultimately, we have reason to esteem and what we derivatively value as being helpful for what we have reason to esteem

[..]

If we are ready to recognise the need for seeing the world in this broader perspective, it becomes immediately clear that development cannot be divorced from ecological and environmental concerns. For example, since we have reasons to value the freedom to lead a pollution-free life, the preservation of a pollution-free atmosphere must be an important part of the objectives of development. Seeing development as enhancement of human freedom involves diverse concerns, but incorporating expansion of social opportunities and the quality of life, which are integrally dependent on ecology and environmental preservation, must be among the central
concerns in development thinking.

The part above was probably for the bottom-line minded free market economists. The part below is aimed at the purist greens.

The environment is sometimes seen – I believe over-simply – as the state of “nature,” including such measures as the extent of forest cover, the depth of the ground water table, the number of living species, and so on. To the extent that it is assumed that this pre-existing nature will stay intact unless we add impurities and pollutants to it, it might, therefore, appear superficially plausible that environment is best protected if we interfere with it as little as possible. This understanding is, however, deeply defective for two extremely important reasons.

First, the value of environment cannot be just a matter of what there is, but also of what opportunities they actually offer. The impact of the environment on human lives must inter alia be among the relevant considerations in assessing the richness of the environment. To take an extreme example, in understanding why the eradication of small pox is not viewed as an impoverishment of nature ("the environment is poorer since small pox viruses have disappeared!”), in the way, say, the destruction of useful and lovely forests would be, the connection with lives in general and human lives in particular has to be brought into the understanding.

[..]

Second, the environment is not only a matter of passive preservation, but also one 0f active pursuit. Even though many human activities that accompany the process of development may have destructive consequences, it is also within human power to enhance and improve the environment in which we live. In thinking about the steps that may be taken to halt environmental destruction, we have to search for constructive human intervention. Our power to intervene with effectiveness and reasoning can be substantially enhanced by the process of development itself.

For example, greater female education and women's employment can help to reduce fertility rates, which in the long run can reduce the pressure on global warming and the increasing destruction of natural habitats. Similarly, the spread of school education and improvements in its quality can make us more environment conscious. Better communication and a richer media can make us more aware of the need for environment-oriented, thinking. It is easy to find many other examples of interconnection. In general, seeing development in terms of increasing the effective freedom of human beings brings the constructive agency of people in environment-friendly activities directly within the domain of developmental achievements. Development is fundamentally an empowering process, and this power can be used to preserve and enrich the environment, and not just to decimate it.

I don't find this concept of interconnectivity hard to understand. One can only hope that enough people come together in time to avoid irreversible environmental damage. Read his entire speech here.

The conference had several interesting research papers presented. You can find the entire listing here. I haven't gone through all of them yet. One in particular, caught my attention. A proposal to shift to using yearlong daylight saving time in India, by Prof. Dilip Ahuja and Prof. D P Sen Gupta of National Institute of Advanced Studies, India

To shift IST from 82.5ºE (Jarwa, UP) to 90ºE (Dhuburi, Assam), i.e., from being 5 hours 30 minutes ahead of UTC (=GMT) to being 6 hours ahead of UTC; Will provide an extra half hour of daylight in the evenings, when it is more useful, all year long for the entire country. Annually 1.7 billion units, @ Rs. 5 per unit, the estimate of electricity savings is ~Rs. 850 crores per year

Read the full proposal here.

I was a little disappointed to see very few presentations from the Indian Industry. There was one from Coal India and there was one from a startup company called SuryaBijlee.com. That was about it.

Mailamma

"It is with great sorrow that we announce that Ms. Mailamma, the leader of the anti-Coca-Cola struggle in Plachimada in Kerala, passed away on January 6, 2007.

Mailamma was a central figure in the campaign to hold Coca-Cola accountable for water shortages and pollution in the area" via IndiaResource.org

I sincerely hope that her efforts bring about a positive change. Increase awareness on water issues and sustainability. Help create a sound public policy. And not get lost in petty politics. IndiaTogether has an excellent article here

"Why is the LDF keen to confine the legal arguments to medical issues, when clearly there are other considerations? The party isn't saying, but it is not to be forgotten that it was the previous LDF government which, in 1999, welcomed the Coke factory to Plachimada. Making political capital out of the CSE report but turning a blind eye to the core issues may have given the party an opportunity to appear energetic in its opposition to the bottling plants, but also quietly backtrack in court.
...

The task before the government is quite clear cut," says Brahmaputran, of the Plachimada Pathana Samithy. He wants loopholes in laws that govern the environment, water resources, and health to be plugged, and more importantly, he wants decisions that affect local communities in a big way to be made by them, not in the state capital or in New Delhi"

REVA. The electriCity Car

The blog world was buzzing yesterday about GM's latest electric concept car Volt, unveiled at the Detroit international auto show. WorldChanging has an excellent review here

Anyway...that is not what this post is about. This is about "REVA, The electriCity Car". India's version of the electric car. It has been getting a lot of press. It attracted a $20 million venture capital investment recently. Forbes calls it an "exotic car".

I am a little embarrassed to know about all this, this late.


The company claims that it can go upto 80KM on a single charge. The operational cost is said to be 1/10th that of a conventional Petrol (Gasoline) car. Dealer and service networks available in Bangalore, Delhi, Ahmedabad, Chennai, Hyderabad, Pune.

Can this be India's answer to zero emission and oil independence?

Here is a thought.....What if the car comes with a collapsible solar cell array? Even better if the car is painted with embedded solar cells. Plug into the Sun when you are parked.

Water Water Water

The 2006 UN Human Development Report (HDR) , documents some really disturbing trends when it comes to water. This chart in particular.

India's military spending is several times higher compared to spending on water and sanitation. I can understand the need for security, but what is life without water ?

Read the entire report here

It goes without saying that the Indian government needs to set its priorities straight. Set up clear guidelines and regulations on civil and industrial water usage.

It is refreshing however to see that the private sector better understands the extent and urgency of the crisis. Dow Chemicals has created a $350 million water solutions business unit. GE Water is not far behind. Then there are several startups exploring the use of Nanotechnology & Solar Energy to provide cost effective desalination solutions. Check out NanoH2O , Seawater Greenhouse & Suncone (to name a few).

Here is a thought......What if cash rich companies like Coca Cola India, Pepsi India & others spent their money adopting these new technologies instead of bashing CSE ? What if they were to become leaders in water conservation and desalination? What if the Indian government adopted these technologies in its thermal power plants (the most water intensive industry).

Many ifs . A win win for all

Laurie Baker's Mud

Laurie Baker needs no introduction. The master Indian architect is well known for his design simplicity and harmony with nature. I have always wanted to live in a house designed by him. His designs are like a breath of fresh air in the otherwise stifling jungle of concrete matchbox houses. I remember Laurie Baker from my school days in Thiruvanthapuram, India. He was my neighbor for a little while. I remember him taking his regular evening walks. Smiling at us kids playing street cricket. We would stop our game and intently watch this very tall English man pass us by.

He has written several books. They are published by Center for Science and Technology for Rural Development (COSTFORD). His books are very much like his designs, simple, sensible and elegant. First in the series, is this book titled "Laurie Baker's Mud".

[N]ational census will show you that numerically, there are more houses in India made of mud than of any other material. So why have we stopped using it? Actually, we have not stopped using it.Many rural families and many of our poorer people still build with mud-but official or Government housing schemes rarely use it and our growing 'Middle Class' also rarely uses it.

[W]e seem now to be much more class conscious and mud is connected in peoples minds with "the poor", with "Poverty", with cowsheds and pigsties, with Rural EWS Schemes and so on. Who will marry my daughter if I live in a mud house ?

So I wanted to show that mud may be old fashioned. (that to me is a plus point - it has been tested and tried over thousands of years whereas concrete has been in circulation for less than a hundred years), but it could be successfully used even for the best houses, and indeed, if all of us are to go into the 21st century with a roof over our 700-800-900 million heads we will only be able to do it if we put mud back into its rightful status. So this book is to see how we can go about it.

Laurie Baker certainly knows his mud. He explains how mud can be used effectively to build elegant houses. His explanations are simple and are often accompanied by sketches. Provides scientific explanations where needed. Before you know it you are at the last page.

One of the wonderful and endearing things about mud is that there is a vast wide range of muds and every single one has its own individual characteristics. All of it is God made and not machine made. So it is not standardized, and it is almost limitless is quantity. Therefore to many, especially to the engineering world, it is maddening rather endearing because you have to get to know your own mud and how to handle it. all ladies have beautiful eyes and bewitching hair and shapely lips but ideally you have to learn to live with, love, cherish and understand your own particular woman.

Treat your mud as you should treat your wife and you will have a wonderful house for life!

Class consciousness makes us shortsighted many a times. In Kerala, sand mining the river beds to build our monstrous socially acceptable concrete houses are drying our rivers dead. We build our concrete houses and end up buying energy hogging air conditioners to cool these concrete ovens we call houses.

Isn't it high time we strengthened our basics? Harmony with nature and building with locally available and sustainable material. Mud certainly can be part of that equation.

Rang De

Rang De Basanti turned out to be a good movie going experience. It has been a long time since an Indian movie has hit regular theatres here. While I don't agree with the violence theory of the movie, I am happy to see mainstream Indian cinema moving away from the tiring sing, dance and runaround trees routine.

For about 3-4 hours, it felt like home.... The latecomers, the prolonged settling down, the different languages, the cellphoners, all the kids running around, the Uncles and Aunties, the food passing around, the jokes, the long line at the restroom after the movie, the insta movie reviews while at the restroom. All in all it was vintage Indian movie going. Loved it!

K.R. Narayanan

Kocheril Raman Narayanan 1921 – 2005
10th President of the Indian Republic
May his soul rest in peace

Quote of the day
"There was governmental and administrative support for the communal riots in Gujarat. I gave several letters to Prime Minister Vajpayee in this regard on this issue. I met him personally and talked to him directly. But Vajpayee did not do anything effective.

I requested him to send the army to Gujarat and suppress the riots. The Centre had the Constitutional responsibility and powers to send the military if the state governments asked. The military was sent, but they were not given powers to shoot. If the military was given powers to shoot at the perpetrators of violence, recurrence of tragedies in Gujarat could have been avoided.

However, both the state and central government did not do so. Had the military been given powers to shoot, the carnage in Gujarat could have been avoided to a great extent. I feel there was a conspiracy involving the state and central governments behind the Gujarat riots" ~ K R Narayanan