What is a crowdgrid?

At the Lab, we look at people's role in energy systems of the future. We believe in citizen ownership over their own energy needs. A crowdgrid gives communities control over their energy costs (and potential revenue) and, importantly, provides energy for productive use with possibilities for income generation.

In Tanzania, we speak of  'Umeme Jamii', a combination of two Swahili words: 'umeme' which translates into 'electricity or lighting' and 'jamii' which translates into 'community or society'. 

How does a crowdgrid work?

The Energy Change Lab has explored alternative electrification strategies that allow people to progressively upgrade their local energy supply, and to become ‘prosumers’, by selling the excess energy they produce to their neighbours. Energy capacity in villages with solar home systems (SHS) can increase if independent SHS start connecting to and building on each other, becoming an intertwined system. This technology is also known as 'swarmgrid'.

Crowd grid in Tanzania

Scoping for crowdgrid options in urban and rural Tanzania has led us to conclude that, due to legal restrictions in grid- powered areas, rural, unconnected areas that meet local demand for SHS will be our focus area for the prototyping of a crowdgrid. We are currently exploring possible rural locations where we will identify, together with a Tanzanian solar company and village community members, demand
 for a crowdgrid and then co-develop the prototype.

Designing an inclusive energy system

The technical specifications, delivery model, management structure, and financing scheme will be developed through an inclusive bottom-up process. This process will provide rich learning in terms of technical outcomes and community-level needs and engagement. If successful, the idea has great potential to add more individual and community
 value to existing isolated SHS, while simultaneously strengthening ‘prosumer’ opportunities, radically shifting our conception of energy systems, from top-down to bottom-up.