Traditional Woodfuels: Insights into Impacts and Interventions

Forestry & Environmental Studies Seminar Series

Traditional Woodfuels: Insights into Impacts and Interventions 
Robert Bailis, Associate Professor, Yale School of Forestry & Environmental Studies (F&ES)

Over half of all wood harvested worldwide is used as fuelwood or charcoal, supplying ~7 percent of global primary energy. By depleting stocks of aboveground biomass, unsustainable woodfuel provision can contribute to forest degradation or deforestation, as well as climate change. In addition, exposure to smoke from woodfuels is a major health risk, creating a larger health burden than Tb, HIV, or malaria. While the health effects of woodfuels are well characterized, the environmental impacts remain poorly understood. Moreover, efforts to intervene in this space in order to reduce either health or environmental impacts have seen limited success. I'll present the results of a new effort to quantify the sustainability of traditional woodfuels and estimate the GHG emissions associated with their use. I'll also discuss past and current approaches to interventions in household energy and review plans for an upcoming project in which we will test different dissemination methods to identify more effective approaches to reduce the health and environmental burdens caused by woodfuel dependence.

12:00-1:00 FREE EVENT
Burke Auditorium, Kroon Hall
195 Prospect Street
Lunch will be provided – first come, first served