socio-cultural dimensions of cluster vs. single home photovoltaic solar energy systems in rural nepal社会文化维度的集群和单个家庭光伏太阳能系统在尼泊尔农村.pdf
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Sustainability 2010, 2, 494-504; doi:10.3390/su2020494
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sustainability
ISSN 2071-1050
/journal/sustainability
Article
Socio-Cultural Dimensions of Cluster vs. Single Home
Photovoltaic Solar Energy Systems in Rural Nepal
Kimber Haddix McKay
Department of Anthropology, University of Montana, Missoula, MT 59812, USA;
E-Mail: kimber.mckay@; Tel.: +1-406-243-4106; Fax: +1-406-243-4918.
Received: 2 December 2009 / Accepted: 25 January 2010 / Published: 2 February 2010
Abstract: This paper analyzes the socio-cultural dimensions of obstacles facing solar
photovoltaic projects in two villages in rural Nepal. The study was conducted in Humla
District, Nepal, one of the most remote and impoverished regions of the country. There are
no roads in the district, homes lack running water and villagers’ health suffers from high
levels of indoor air pollution from open cooking/heating fires and the smoky torches
traditionally burned for light. The introduction of solar energy is important to these
villagers, as it removes one major source of indoor air pollution from homes and provides
brighter light than the traditional torches. Solar energy is preferable in many villages in the
region due to the lack of suitable streams or rivers for micro-hydroelectric projects. In the
villages under study in this paper, in-home solar electricity is a novel and recent
innovation, and was installed within the last three years in two different geo-spati
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