'Solar panel on used for lighting village homes' by World Bank Photo Collection via Flickr (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0) https://flic.kr/p/42H6dY

A photo of two men looking at a solar panel. One is pointing to the corner. There are green trees in the background.

An Overview of Impact Pathways

27 November 2024

Laurie Spicer

Institute of Development Studies

Louise Clark

Institute of Development Studies

Summary

The CEDCA Overview of Impact Pathways (Figure 1) presents a visual summary of key impact pathways from across the 12 projects of the Clean Energy for Development: A Call to Action (CEDCA) initiative, funded by the International Development Research Centre (IDRC). It is the result of an analysis of initial documentation from each of the projects within the initiative to identify areas of coherence across their proposed activities, and desired outcomes and impacts. It does not seek to provide an exhaustive account of every aspect of all the CEDCA projects, but to identify the different types of impact pathways across projects to represent the essence of CEDCA. The primary objective of this overview is to ensure that every project within the CEDCA initiative can identify itself, at least to some extent, within one or more of the impact pathways outlined, demonstrating a shared purpose and complementary processes among projects.

The overview is intended to be a tool, open to adaptation and updates based on input from individual projects, and collective reflections across the cohort. As the projects progress and evolve, their experiences and insights can be incorporated into future iterations of this overview, ensuring that it remains relevant and accurately reflects ongoing work. This adaptability will enable the overview to respond to emerging outcomes and learning of individual projects, acting as a resource for the CEDCA community.

Cite this publication

Spicer, L. and Clark, L. (2024) Clean Energy for Development: A Call to Action. An Overview of Impact Pathways, CEDCA Impact Pathways Report, Brighton: Institute of Development Studies DOI: 10.19088/CEDCA.2024.003

Copy

learning

Documents

Credit: Formation, Recherche, et Environnement dans la Tshopo (FORETS), Democratic Republic of Congo by Axel Fassio/CIFOR via Flickr, CC BY-NC-ND 2.0 https://flic.kr/p/M4bV7G

A photo of a woman carrying a solar panel in a wooded area. The sky is lined with trees and the woman looks towards the camera.
T20 Side Event: Powering change: Women, youth, and the clean energy revolution

Thursday 12 June 2025

Watch again In this virtual panel event, we will bring together experts from various regions to address a critical challenge of our time: ensuring that women and youth are not left behind in the global transition to clean energy. Gender equity needs to be at the centre of clean energy policies or women will become […]

IMPACT OF CLIMATE CHANGE Suvarna Amrutappa Alkatti by UN Women Asia and the Pacific via Flickr. CC BY-NC-ND 2.0 https://flic.kr/p/eZjQgk

A woman stands in the middle of a field, next to a pile of hay, and looks out towards the horizon. The ground looks dry and the sky is hazy.
Powering an Inclusive Energy Future: Driving the G20 from Commitment to Implementation

10 October 2025

As the world accelerates toward a clean energy future, the question is no longer whether the transition will happen, but how equitable, inclusive, and sustainable it will be. Under Brazil’s 2024 presidency, the G20 endorsed a set of ‘Principles for Just and Inclusive Energy Transitions’, recognising that the shift to renewable energy must do more […]

Credit: UNU-INRA

A group of people stand around looking at a new innovation that is being piloted. One person holds a dried leaf and places it into a machine for processing.
Piloting of Youth-Designed Clean Technologies for Women Farmers in Ghana and Senegal

19 September 2025

Recently, the Innovate for Clean Powered Agro Technologies (INFoCAT) project held two events in Ghana and Senegal, to showcase and pilot clean technology solutions that have been developed by young Agritech Innovators. Each new technology was developed to address challenges faced by smallholder women farmers and agro-processors. The piloting programme was to show the creativity […]