Back to the Future: Kenya

The document describes a participatory research project in Kitulu, Kenya, where community members used backcasting to imagine a 2030 scenario of universal electric cooking. Participants linked electric cooking to broader development gains, such as improved infrastructure and food security, while emphasizing a stepwise transition through 'stacking' different cooking technologies. The study highlights the importance of building community social capacity and civic engagement to demand public services and manage the transition.

• Community members in Kitulu associated the adoption of electric cooking with a broader 'development leap' involving improved infrastructure, including street lighting, electricity for schools and clinics, roads, and internet access.
• Electric cooking is perceived as a means to improve food security by allowing residents to "eat on demand," as current biomass fire-lighting is time-consuming and limited to evenings.
• The community views the energy transition as a stepwise process of 'stacking' technologies, where households gradually add cleaner fuels and technologies to their kitchens alongside existing ones, rather than an overnight switch.
• Successful transition requires the development of local social capacity—such as farmers' and savings groups—and civic engagement to enable the community to demand public services and access government programs.

APA

Stockholm Environment Institute (2020). Back to the Future: Kenya. https://www.sei.org/featured/back-to-the-future-kenya

Chicago

Stockholm Environment Institute. Back to the Future: Kenya. 2020. https://www.sei.org/featured/back-to-the-future-kenya.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Stockholm Environment Institute |title=Back to the Future: Kenya |date=6 July 2020 |url=https://www.sei.org/featured/back-to-the-future-kenya |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{stockholmenvironmentinstitute2020back, author = {{Stockholm Environment Institute}}, title = {{Back to the Future: Kenya}}, institution = {Stockholm Environment Institute}, year = {2020}, month = jul, url = {https://www.sei.org/featured/back-to-the-future-kenya}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }