The modern issue of energy inequality: why energy doesn't reach everyone

A look into why energy inequality persists in the modern day

Everyone needs energy. Whether it be to heat or cool our homes, to cook food for our families, or power the personal devices that many have come to rely on in the 21st century. So, where does energy come from and why doesn’t everyone have the same access to it? Answering these questions requires first, examining the modern energy systems in the world, and second, understanding what factors impact access to modern energy. 

United States primary energy consumption in 2023. Courtesy of the US Energy Information Administration

Today, many people benefit from reliable and robust energy systems for their everyday needs. The energy sources that provide people with heat and electricity can be broken down into non-renewable and renewable energy ¹. The majority of people with access to modern energy rely on nonrenewable sources such as natural gas, fossil fuels, or petroleum. A smaller majority rely on renewable energies such as solar and hydropower. This general reliance has brought great leaps in countries’ development and quality of life ².

Despite energy being a critical part of our modern human development and quality of life, many people have been left behind in the rapid development of this sector. In fact, around 40% of the global population still depend on burning biomass such as wood or dung as their primary form of energy ². This reliance on outdated sources has been closely connected to smaller access to reliable electricity, a necessary component for human development ³. On a surface level, access to reliable energy is often limited from low-income people (low GDP) and people who reside in rural regions ⁴. The negative impacts of limited energy access stretch far beyond not having electricity to stay warm or cook food; they are evident in the very systems that run societies globally ⁵. 

Data showing progress in electricity access in sub-Saharan Africa. Courtesy of the IEA.

In fact, limited access to clean, modern energy greatly limits communities’ ability to reduce poverty, broaden education, and improve public health ⁶. Without access to a stable electricity supply, communities cannot support and grow their economies ⁷. Reliance on biomass for energy production also results in significant pollution and health risks to humans ². This evidence alone is enough to reveal the true importance of energy accessibility and consumption. 

Considering how greatly access to energy intersects with basic human necessities and quality of life, it is critical that the ongoing energy crisis is addressed . Without rapid actions towards fighting energy injustice, economic, health, and agricultural inequalities will continue to persist and worsen. It will take rapid changes and government commitments to bring needed change, but the global community should stay hopeful because of the many modern solutions that exist to expand access to energy. 

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Historical Analysis

Energy has a withstanding importance in the history of the human species. Changes in energy sources and usage are largely responsible for the major developmental jumps humans have achieved ⁸. With this, access to energy is projected to be a key issue in the coming decades ². 

The modern energy inequalities observed today began as specific global powers slowed their reliance on animate power (energy derived from humans and animals) and biomass fuels, and started relying on fossil fuels for their needs ⁸. More specifically, the invention of a reliable system of electricity generation pioneered in the early 1880s allowed for a massive increase in industrial production and the growing accessibility to fossil fuels led to a boom in the use of personal vehicles and transportation ⁸. Since then, the demand for energy in response to industrialization, urbanization, and societal affluence has only grown and has consequently caused caused an extremely uneven global distribution of primary energy consumption ⁹.

In the modern day, richer western states such as the United States, Japan, and Germany have more agency in responding to internal energy injustice because of their stronger political and economic prowess compared to states in the Global South. The importance of these two factors has made it historically harder for countries in the Global South to work on expanding energy access domestically ¹⁰. Despite these hurdles, overall access to electricity is growing. However, this access to electricity does not always correlate to actual energy usage ⁴. Often times those who have access to energy are not always able to use it due to factors such as unreliable energy grids or because they cannot afford to pay their electricity bills ⁴. This phenomenon is described as energy poverty, or lack of adequate, reliable, and affordable energy for lighting, cooking, heating, and other daily activities necessary for welfare and economic development ¹¹.

Political Analysis

The existing global energy infrastructure often makes it easy for more powerful nations to control the energy choices and strategies of less powerful communities ¹⁰. Current centralized energy infrastructure systems such as petroleum offer more access to those with the political power and resources to take advantage of this market ¹². Because of this implicit correlation between power and access to modern energy systems, many researchers are suggesting implementing more decentralized energy systems such as solar and wind to enable greater access without limitations placed by economic and political power ¹². Current efforts to transition countries to renewable energy, however, often struggle because of the power of centralized energy politics. This is to say that the renewable energy agenda often clashes with existing energy systems and this limits what they can do ¹². 

This graphic depicts the series of steps it will take to transition the globe to a reliable energy network. It also highlights the role that private investment plays in bringing progress to this issue. Courtesy of the Institute for Development Impact

Researchers have found that sustained energy access is not always correlated to income and often has to do with governance, institutions, and other factors ¹³. The Ukrainian and Russian conflict is a recent development that exemplifies this finding as many of the countries impacted by the conflict have relatively strong economies ¹⁴. Because many European countries relied solely on Russia for natural gas, they were hit hard by the war on both the industrial and household level ¹⁵.

Economic Analysis

A key fact in analyzing global access to energy is: no country has been able to electrify its rural areas without extensive financial support from its government ¹⁶. This means that in order for countries to expand access to electricity into their most rural areas, they need a stable government who can support the development of costly task of building energy infrastructure ¹⁷. This has become a major limiting factor in the expansion of energy access globally.

Chart depicting the rapid growth of energy consumption over a 200 year period. Courtesy of Colgan and Hinthorn.

Another aspect to consider is that as more communities gain access to electricity, the global demand for energy will increase significantly. This comes from the fact that the most developed countries use the most electricity, signifying that global electrification will require an immense expansions of energy production which will be costly, to say the least ¹⁶. Adding onto this finding is the fact that the economies of major oil producers like Saudi Arabia, Russia, and The United States are likely to suffer from efforts to expand access to electricity through renewable energy infrastructure, making them less likely to support global electrification ¹⁷.

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As you can see, energy inequality is a multifaceted issue with a long history. I hope this blog has been able to answer the question of why energy inequality persists while also sparking your interest in the key role energy access plays in societal development.

-- Sophie Wassef

ps. if you found this blog interesting, I recommend you click through some of the sources listed below

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11. Beyond access: 1.18 billion in energy poverty... | Data Futures Exchange. (n.d.). UNDP. Retrieved April 14, 2025, from https://data.undp.org/blog/1-18-billion-around-the-world-in-energy-poverty

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***Disclaimer***

I am not an expert on Energy Injustice, and the following blog is based on my own research into the issue. Therefore, this blog may not illustrate all of the aspects of this challenge fully.