Renewable energy & land use barriers to just transition in the Global South

The report argues that the rapid scale-up of renewables in the Global South often replicates 'energy colonialism' and 'green grabbing,' where land and resources are appropriated for climate goals while host communities suffer from loss of livelihoods, water scarcity, and continued energy poverty. Through case studies in India, Palestine, Bangladesh, and Argentina, it highlights systemic barriers including patriarchal structures that exclude women from decision-making, outdated grid infrastructure, and a lack of effective environmental impact assessments. It recommends a shift toward small-scale, socially controlled, and decentralized renewable energy that prioritizes human rights and ecological conservation over corporate profit.

• Large-scale renewable projects in the Global South frequently replicate extractivist patterns of the fossil fuel industry, leading to 'green grabbing' where land is appropriated for environmental ends, often displacing local communities without providing them with energy benefits.
• The Rewa Ultra Mega Solar project in Madhya Pradesh, India, has disrupted agrarian lifestyles by overlooking seasonal land-use patterns and displacing landless pastoralist families, while the host communities continue to experience severe energy scarcity.
• In Palestine, the development of solar energy is severely constrained by Israeli control over land and an outdated, Israeli-owned grid that limits the capacity to increase renewable energy generation.
• Solar projects in the Palestinian West Bank face a gap between policy and practice regarding environmental safeguards, with many medium-to-large scale projects failing to conduct preliminary environmental impact assessments or post-installation monitoring.
• In Bangladesh, political apathy and a 'techno-centric' approach favor centralized fossil fuel dependence over renewables, while urban rooftop solar policies are ineffective due to bureaucratic barriers and a lack of grid connection.
• Lithium mining in Argentina's Catamarca province exemplifies 'green energy colonialism,' where minerals are extracted for global energy transitions (such as electric vehicles) while threatening local water security and ignoring Ramsar wetland protections.
• Patriarchal structures in Bangladesh and Palestine systematically exclude women from technical and decision-making roles in renewable energy projects beyond the domestic household sphere.
• Outdated grid infrastructure across the studied regions acts as a significant barrier to the transition, with some local solar capacity in Palestine exceeding the grid's available capacity, risking network damage.

APA

Schiffer, A., Shaw, S., Al Butmeh, A., Rabi, A., Snunu, A., Wafi, A., Salvatico, N., Gould, M. M., Alderete, G., Sablé, L., Fernandes, M., Damle, H., Kumar, R., & Ahamad, A. (2023). Renewable energy & land use barriers to just transition in the Global South. Friends of the Earth International. https://www.foei.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Renewable-energy-and-land-use_just-transition_FOEI-report.pdf

Chicago

Schiffer, Anne, Sara Shaw, Abeer Al Butmeh, Ayman Rabi, Aya Snunu, Ali Wafi, Natalia Salvatico, et al. Renewable energy & land use barriers to just transition in the Global South. Friends of the Earth International, 2023. https://www.foei.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Renewable-energy-and-land-use_just-transition_FOEI-report.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Schiffer |first1=Anne |last2=Shaw |first2=Sara |last3=Al Butmeh |first3=Abeer |last4=Rabi |first4=Ayman |last5=Snunu |first5=Aya |last6=Wafi |first6=Ali |last7=Salvatico |first7=Natalia |last8=Gould |first8=María Mercedes |last9=Alderete |first9=Giuliana |display-authors=etal |title=Renewable energy & land use barriers to just transition in the Global South |publisher=Friends of the Earth International |date=February 2023 |url=https://www.foei.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Renewable-energy-and-land-use_just-transition_FOEI-report.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{schiffer2023renewable, author = {Schiffer, Anne and Shaw, Sara and Al Butmeh, Abeer and Rabi, Ayman and Snunu, Aya and Wafi, Ali and Salvatico, Natalia and Gould, María Mercedes and Alderete, Giuliana and Sablé, Lis and Fernandes, Marianna and Damle, Himanshu and Kumar, Rajesh and Ahamad, Ayaz}, title = {{Renewable energy \& land use barriers to just transition in the Global South}}, institution = {Friends of the Earth International}, year = {2023}, month = feb, url = {https://www.foei.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Renewable-energy-and-land-use_just-transition_FOEI-report.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }