Summary: Countries worldwide are being urged to adopt utility-scale solar and wind to effectively decarbonize the global power sector. The strategic investment in wind and solar is becoming an increasingly important issue that necessitates the analysis of socio-economic, political, institutional, environmental, technical, and investment risk factors. This lecture introduces a geospatial-based approach to optimize on solar and wind at the African continental scale and foster coordination among donors. For smaller islands (Hawaii, Mauritius, Rodrigues), a pathway enabling the conservation of pristine landscapes in the face of geospatial exploitation for renewables, is presented.

Speaker: Dr Jay Doorga is a lecturer at the Université des Mascareignes (partnered with Université de Limoges). He holds a MSc in Environmental Change and Management from the University of Oxford and a PhD in GIS: Modelling and Forecasting. He is the recipient of academic honors and awards, including the Oxford ECM Dissertation Award, Cambridge Outstanding Achievement Award, State of Mauritius Laureate Scholarship, and Gold Medalist of the University of Mauritius. Jay has published widely in the fields of GIS/Renewable Energy and holds a patent for the invention of a wave energy device.