Cleaner Cooking and Reducing Household Energy Emissions

Funding Agency:
Environmental Protection Agency

This notice announces the availability of funds and solicits applications from eligible entities, as defined in Section III A, to improve climate, environment, health, gender, and livelihoods by reducing emissions in low-to-middle income countries from household energy use (home cooking, heating, and lighting) and promoting the sustained use of clean and cleaner technologies and fuels.

Eligible entities to submit applications under this announcement are non-profit organizations with experience conducting: capacity building, technical assistance, guidance development, and dissemination and standards adoption efforts that have achieved positive outcomes in the international household energy and health sector are encouraged to submit applications.

Approximately three billion people around the world, including 600,000 low-income Americans, cook their food and/or heat their homes over open fires or with rudimentary stoves using biomass fuel (e.g., wood, dung, crop residues) and/or coal. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that the emissions from these practices expose people to extraordinarily high levels of indoor air pollution that causes approximately 3.2 million premature deaths (from cooking emissions alone) worldwide annually. An estimated two million of these premature deaths are from direct exposure to household air pollution, primarily among women and girls, and one million from the contribution of household air pollution to ambient air pollution. Because an estimated 20% of ambient air pollution globally, and often more than 40% locally, comes from cookstoves and household energy use, these emissions impact everyone. Not just people in low-to-middle income countries, but everyone in the world.

Improving health equity is a primary motivator for reducing emissions from household energy use; climate equity is another powerful reason. It is estimated that Greenhouse Gas Emissions from non-renewable woodfuels used for cooking amount to a gigaton of Carbon Dioxide (CO2) pollution per year. This represents about 2% percent of global CO2 emissions; on par with CO2 emissions from aviation or shipping. Household energy emissions are also the largest controllable source of the short-lived climate pollutant black carbon. It is especially important to reduce black carbon emissions in mountainous regions like the Andes and Himalayas, because the dark deposits on what would otherwise be reflective snowy white surfaces absorb the rays from the sun and thus accelerate glacial melting, and impact rainfall and the local climate. Additionally, using wood and charcoal to cook has grave impacts on forests, one of our world’s most precious resources. Over 275 million people live in woodfuel “hotspots” where over 50% of woodfuel harvesting is unsustainable causing land degradation which can lead to deforestation, desertification, and habitat loss. Given that up to 34% of woodfuel harvested is unsustainable, this is another negative climate change impact of household energy use.

To achieve sustainable progress, EPA is supporting technical assistance, policies, standards of performance and practice, and development of supply chains for household energy technologies. EPA is also promoting the transition to cleaner fuels in Africa, Asia, and Latin America – fuels such as electricity, LPG, ethanol, household biogas, and processed biomass pellets through multiple strategies to rapidly increase the sustained use of clean, reliable, affordable, efficient and safe home cooking and heating practices.

EPA is requesting applications from eligible entities to advance the state of knowledge, increase the exchange of technical and programmatic advances, and achieve results that rapidly increase the use of clean, reliable, affordable, efficient, and safe home cooking and heating practices.

Activities should increase the capacity of public and private sector organizations working in Africa, Asia, and Latin America to identify effective approaches, share lessons learned, and more rapidly assimilate insights and innovations from around the world into strategies and programs being deployed in these areas of the world. Applicants should describe in detail how their project will address improvements of existing home cooking and heating technologies and fuels and promote cleaner stove and fuel technologies. EPA is particularly interested in engaging national governments in: 1) efforts that will advance the adoption or adaptation and then implementation by of International Organization for Standardization (ISO) standards, and/or 2) implementing their household energy commitments in their Paris Agreement Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs).

Eligible applicants may submit only one application. Interested applicants from within Duke should contact fundopps@duke.edu as early as possible.

Deadline: Feb. 28, 2023

Agency Website

Eligibility Requirements

In accordance with Assistance Listing No. 66.034 and EPA’s Policy for Competition of Assistance Agreements (EPA Order § 5700.5A1), competition under this solicitation is available to states (including the District of Columbia); local governments; U.S. territories and possessions; Indian tribes; international organizations; public and private universities and colleges, hospitals, and laboratories; and other public or private non-profit institutions.

Amount

$900,000

Amount Description

The total estimated funding for this competitive opportunity is approximately $3,000,000. EPA anticipates awarding $1,000,000 annually over three years subject to availability of funds. EPA anticipates awarding one to three cooperative agreements from this announcement, subject to availability of funds, the quality of applications received, and other applicable considerations. Annual funding for any award will not exceed $900,000. Eligible applicants may submit only one application.

Funding Type

Grant

Eligibility

Faculty

Category

Engineering and Physical Sciences
Environmental & Life Sciences
Interdisciplinary
Medical
Medical - Clinical Science
Medical - Translational
Social Sciences

External Deadline

February 28, 2023