ABSTRACT
This chapter highlights the diversity in local conditions and practices that will influence the effectiveness of efforts to improve energy access amongst forcibly displaced people. It makes the case for careful consideration of context and a broader approach to ‘fixing the energy problem’ that goes beyond the prevalent focus on products and supplies of fuel and power. Drawing on examples from a range of existing humanitarian energy studies, the chapter highlights the similarities and differences between energy conditions for displaced and host communities, the importance of the governance and policy environment, and what the global trend toward higher levels of displacement in urban areas means for approaches to energy. The authors argue that in protracted situations (in camp and non-camp locations), energy becomes a question of local infrastructure and markets, including the ways in which those are regulated and supported. Recent developments in international frameworks for addressing displacement crises also pave the way for a focus on effectively integrating sustainable energy with housing, water, health, livelihood and other vital human needs, for both displaced and local communities.
