Just and fair household energy transition in rural Latin American households: are we moving forward?

Abstract

In this paper we conduct a scoping review of current household energy use patterns and trends in rural Latin America (LA), with the objective of identifying strategies that help promote just and fair transitions in the region. We reviewed a total of 143 publications covering 13 countries within the period from 1996 to 2021. The review shows: (a) fuelwood (FW) continues to be a very important, resilient—and in many countries—the dominant cooking fuel for rural LA households, both exclusively and increasingly stacked (combined) with liquefied petroleum gas (LPG); (b) FW is mostly used in open fires and rustic stoves, with a total toll of 59 000 premature deaths. Interventions have centered on the dissemination of improved woodburning chimney cookstoves and increasing access to LPG through top-down government programs. These programs have focused mostly on single-fuel and stove combinations, and on the number of devices installed with little or no follow-up with local users. As a result, success has been limited and open fires have not been fully displaced in most programs. We conclude that renewed efforts are needed to ensure a sustainable and just household energy transition in the LA region. These efforts should promote integrated portfolios of options including improved practices (drying wood, use of pressure cooker), and the stacking of devices (stoves, water heaters, space heating) and fuels (biomass, other). Specifically, improved chimney woodburning stoves need to be integrated with and be an important component of these programs. Programs should adopt a user-centered perspective, beginning with the understanding of users’ needs and priorities and tailoring solutions to their socio-environmental context. Innovation should be fostered through participatory methods, developing tests adapted to local circumstances and enforcing national standards. Implementation programs should focus on the adoption and sustained use of clean(er) devices and the displacement of traditional fires. Public policies should be more integrated and intersectoral seeking synergies between health, environmental, social development, and economic objectives.