#Author:Er Arun Tamang, Eleotronices Engieering NIT Sikkim India https://nitsikkim.ac.in
In Peru, where power outages are common in impoverished areas, many hospitals and health centers face the daunting task of delivering care amid unstable electricity. Most are powered by generators, which run on fuel that can be costly and in short supply. Stable electricity is essential in care delivery, enabling health workers to run medical devices like heart monitors, quickly heat water to disinfect surgical tools, refrigerate medication and vaccines, and carry out countless other tasks. To tackle these challenges, Socios En Salud, as Partners In Health is known in Peru, plans to install solar panels at four health centers across the country. These solar panels come as part of Socios En Salud’s ongoing work to strengthen Peru’s health system in partnership with the Ministry of Health.The first solar panels were installed in March at a health center in the southern Arequipa region. More panels will be installed in June and July at health centers in Ucayali, a region in the Amazon rainforest, and Cuzco, a city in the Andes mountains. Peru is one of the most biologically diverse countries in the world, with climate zones ranging from the Andes mountains to the Amazon rainforest. But that biodiversity has come under threat in recent years due to climate change—a global phenomenon of long-term shifts in temperatures and weather patterns due to human activity, primarily the burning of fossil fuels. In the last 15 years, Peru has lost 22% of its glaciers. Last year, it was among the 10 countries with the most tropical primary forest loss. As ice melts, forests dwindle, and sea levels rise, communities already living on the margins—including Peru’s indigenous peoples, who have cared for the environment for millennia—are most at risk of displacement, impoverishment, and lack of access to health care.
But there are ways to counter the effects of climate change. Renewable energy such as solar, which currently accounts for just 1.1% of the world’s energy, will be crucial in responding to climate change and correcting global inequities in energy access, according to the United Nations. More than 80% of the world’s energy comes from fossil fuels, which emit greenhouse gases that contribute to global warming. Solar panels work by converting sunlight into electrical energy. Some panels, like those installed by Socios En Salud, store this energy in a battery, which can be used when sunlight isn’t available. As a form of renewable energy, solar panels are more sustainable than traditional energy sources like a generator, which runs on fuel and emits greenhouse gases. They’re also more cost-effective in the long-term. Peru is among the countries with the highest potential for solar energy, which relies on direct sunlight.
