CANBERRA, Oct. 2 (Xinhua) -- More than 40 thought leaders from Asia convened in Australia for a week-long workshop focused on powering communities.
The Second Lateral Learning Program on Smart Grid Technologies and Implications for Inclusive Development workshop was officially launched at the University of Melbourne in partnership with the Asian Development Bank (ADB) on Monday.
Reihana Mohideen, the coordinator of the workshop and expert at the university's Melbourne Energy Institute, said that the workshop was hoping to solve the issue of energy access in South Asia.
"The impact on local economic development, health and wellbeing, education and mobility is huge," Mohideen said in a media release on Monday.
"Without electricity, school days and study times are shorter, women can't travel at night and maternal mortality rates and deaths for children under five years old rise."
Participants in the workshop will be able to draw on research by the Melbourne School of Engineering and ABD to work on energy storage capacity and social issues surrounding energy transition.
"Access to energy, and electricity, is a human right. We're working with senior government representatives to improve the grid and service delivery to meet the challenges of accessibility, including increased demand, and social issues," Mohideen said.
"Using the latest technology in renewable energy, we want to empower countries to meet the consumer needs of rural and urban communities who currently might not have energy access, or if they do, only have it for a small number of hours a day."
"We need pathways, plans and policies that don't leave marginalised people behind. Ensuring access and equity is an issue in not just developing countries, but places like Australia too where energy prices are rising," he said.
