Typhoon Yolanda displaced nearly a million families and damaged 1.2 million homes in the Visayas, reducing hard-hit Tacloban City to rubble. In Tacloban—and in other areas wiped out by the supertyphoon—the rallying cry was not just to rebuild, but to build back better.
One of the ways this is happening is how typhoon survivors are now using renewable energy (RE). Taclobanons are embracing solar power because there is no electricity, and riding e-jeepneys after conventional multicabs have been rendered inoperable.
The Institute for Climate and Sustainable Cities (iCSC), via its RE-Charge Tacloban initiative, put up the Electric Jeep Transport Corporation (EJTC), along with a solar community center and incubation hub for sustainable livelihoods.
The solar facility is tied to Leyte’s geothermal-powered electrical grid. This allows EJTC e-jeepneys to be charged using solar and geothermal power—both fossil fuel-free energy sources.
“[RE-Charge Tacloban] changed people’s perceptions,” says iCSC associate Teddy Arellano. “Uso na ngayon, nakapila sa kalsada ang mga solar-powered [panels] dahil biglang-mahal ang gasera, at may instances kasi na may nasunog na tent dahil sa gasera.”
Arellano says some families pooled funds to buy basic solar panel systems to power their homes. They’ve either foregone electrical services entirely or save on charges by supplementing with solar.
Furthermore, iCSC is now looking for partners to extend the fleet to operate in the relocation areas, says Arellano. Also in development are RE projects that can spur new livelihoods (for example, low-watt appliances for food storage and cooking).
“We’re showing that it’s viable… RE is not an alternative—it should be how we move segments of people from one place to another. It’s how we should power our offices and homes.”
An excerpt from the feature, "Challenge Accepted," originally published in the December 2014-January 2015 issue of Entrepreneur Philippines.