Solar Energy in Croatia

Solar energy in Croatia


In a world where solar energy is blossoming, a village in Croatia called Ajderovac is a prime example of how solar energy can do great things. Croatia is in need of help, having their GDP growth 16 spots away from being the worst in the world (CIA, 2014). Croatia needs help to get of their feet and become independent. Having sustainable energy throughout the country would drastically help their improvement GDP wise. The thesis question is how does solar energy affect the economy of villages in Croatia? A lot of Croatia’s struggles are due to the 1992 war between Croatia’s militiamen and the Republic of Bosnia which left scars on Croatia’s industry, society, tourism, and economy (Richardson, M, 35, 2015). The war was a huge factor in the decline of Croatia's economy. The thesis statement is More solar education centers opening all throughout the country of Croatia is the answer to the problem of not having sustainable energy in small villages in Croatia.


The war was fought as Croatia was trying to become independent from the Republic of Yugoslavia (Richardson, M, 24, 2015). It was a long, dirty, and grimy grind to rid their country of the other Yugoslavs. The war completely exhausted every aspect of Croatia, including the people. Another disturbing fact that proves the point that Croatia needs help is that the official poverty rate of the world is 14.5% and Croatia’s is 20.5% (CIA, 2014). This is mainly due to the Yugoslavian war, which destroyed a large chunk of Croatia. Having solar energy distributed throughout the small villages in Croatia would allow them to earn a living which would allow them to get out of poverty.


The origin of the problem in the decline of Croatia’s economy is the Yugoslavian War. A whole 21 to 25% of Croatia’s economy was destroyed in the war, showing that it has taken a big chunk out of Croatia over the years (Richardson, M, 56, 2015). Sustainable energy would give people the profit to increase the economy. The main area that needs help is the poorer part of Croatia that is responsible for a large part of Croatia’s country. Ajderovac was also cut off from the electricity grid during the nineties war and hasn’t been reconnected since, they have been neglected like so many other small villages and they need to be helped now (UNDP, 2014). That is why sustainable energy is needed in the small villages to help them become independent. If the small villages become independent, Croatia could save countless amounts of money on not having to produce electricity for all of the small villages.


Areas of impact mainly include family farms and villages, having more than 92% of Croatia’s milk coming from them (Richardson, M, 1, 2015). Energy is needed to refrigerate the milk that is produced there in those villages. Milk is a huge part of Croatia’s profit and small villages are what produces milk. $37,000,000 was lost in damaged infrastructure during the war (Richardson, M., 16, 2015). Debt is also a lingering negative thought of Croatia, and they are desperately trying to pay the debt from the war off. This also resulted in Ajderovac being disconnected from the energy grid. So the area taking the biggest hit are the families that rely on solar energy to refrigerate their crop to get their income.


There are many organizations involved in achieving this goal. One of them, which has been mentioned earlier, is the Solar Education Center in Zagreb which is teaching other small villages about and how to set up a sustainable solar energy system (UNDP, 2011). The Solar Education Center is also giving the resources to give a village sustainable energy. They can only do so much so building more of these centers around Croatia would help tremendously. And lastly the most important one is UNDP, United Nations Development Program, which helps countries including Croatia around the world reach the set Development Goals (iisd, 2012). The UNDP helps countries around the world reach the development goals that are set for the entire world. It has been the main contributor to the goal of getting every village in Croatia sustainable solar energy.


There are many reasons why other countries need to care, and one is that Croatia’s resources are showing promise, and the U.S. is trying to get firms in their growing market (US Embassy, 2014). If Croatia does indeed improve with the help from other countries, then the both Croatia and the US could benefit from it. Croatia shows promise in the future if everyone works together to help Croatia get back up and fighting. Another more important reason is that Croatia is ranked 86th in exports, and if they don’t produce, than other countries will be affected (CIA, 2013). Many other countries including the US trade with Croatia and both the countries benefit. Croatia is rich in natural resources and that is what Croatia can trade if they can get a reliable system going again


Since the installation of the solar energy system, Ajderovac can sell their milk and is motivated to help other villages (UNDP, 2011). Having something that others don't have has motivated Ajderovac to help other villages. If this feeling can spread to other villages, than that can lead to Croatia becoming an independent country once again. What one can do locally is become educated about solar energy, and also get familiar with the MDG and donate (UNDP, 2011). If one visits the UNDP website and reads about the solar energy project than it will explain everything about this project. Another thing one can do is spread the word and get as many people involved as possible. The project has cut down on the harmful diesel engines which helps the environment, however, there are still 126 villages in Croatia that need sustainable energy (UNDP, 2014).


In conclusion, the main contributor to the lack of sustainable energy is the war in the nineties, which still has scars on Croatia (UNDP, 2011). Croatia does indeed have a huge opportunity for solar energy (UNDP, 2011). Croatia’s population growth rate is one of the worst in the world (CIA, 2014). Having solar energy would play a huge part in small villages in Croatia, allowing them to sell the milk that they produce (UNDP, 2011). Having regular access to solar energy could boost the economy by substantial amounts, and that could change the dismal GDP growth rate (UNDP, 2011). Other countries help is needed because Croatia is in the top 100 in exporting so it is important to help Croatia to increase imports to other countries which would help all countries (CIA, 2014). The final thought is that if the goal of having every small village gain access to sustainable solar energy would be a great accomplishment and many would benefit, but there is plenty of work to be done with there being 126 villages and 500 households still in need of sustainable energy.






























References


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