Award winners use local renewable energy to reduce poverty, improve people’s health, wellbeing and economic prospects, and at the same time tackle climate change and other environmental threats, notably deforestation.

There are five international awards in total, each with a first prize of £30,000 and a second prize of £10,000.

Prizes will be awarded for schemes which address at least one of the following areas:

1. Food security

2. Health and welfare

3. Light

4. Education

5. Enterprise

One of the five awards will take the form of a special African Award, reserved specifically for an outstanding scheme from that continent.

This Award was introduced in recognition of the particular challenges which climate change and poverty play in threatening the future of Africa, and the vital contribution which local renewable energy can make in tackling both.

Past winners are the Kigali Institute of Science and Technology (Rwanda) for using biogas systems to improve sanitation and supply cooking fuel in large institutions, and the Mwanza Rural Housing Programme (Tanzania) for developing small businesses which produce high-quality bricks fired using agricultural waste.

For more information and application materials, contact: Ashden Awards for Sustainable Energy Website