This seminar was given on October 7, 2008 as part of the MITEI Seminar Series. Abstract: The poor in the world pay more for energy services, which are often unreliable and from unsustainable sources. There are ways to provide the poor with energy services from sustainable energy sources using innovative combinations of technology and finance. Renewable energies, such as solar, can provide solutions for a better environment and help to alleviate poverty. About the Speaker: Dr. Harish Hande is an engineer and a renewable energy entrepreneur with extensive grassroots experience in meeting the energy requirements of rural households. He is the co-founder of SELCO-INDIA of which he is the Managing Director. SELCO-India is a rural energy service based out of Bangalore, India.. Since 1995, SELCO-India has installed over 95,000 solar lighting systems in rural households. His experience includes a large number of health, education and water related projects: over 500 small rural and urban health clinics, over 1000 rural and semi-urban schools and dormitories, and over 1500 irrigation and drinking water systems. Dr. Hande also is on the board of many national and international organizations. The MITEI Seminar Series is proudly sponsored by CERA.