Posts Tagged energy
PhD Finale
Posted by Bilal Mirza in Personal, Research on March 21, 2010
Since the start of March 2010, my own words committed to my previous PhD dean get knocked in my head. Then back in 2007, when I said that I ‘might’ be able to deliver my first draft in March 2010, I was not fully aware that concluding one’s PhD dissertation is far more difficult than actually starting it. Starting your dissertation gives you an ultimate ‘benefits of doubt’ position where you engage yourself in a process of refining, redesigning and reviewing your research objective and questions to answer, but concluding does not. Concluding your dissertation gets harder as one has to review back to research questions again and again, and relate one’s finding with what actually was meant to be in the dissertation. In most of the time, the gap between your questions (in your proposal; and not in your individual chapter/paper questions) and your actual finding widens, as a result of which you might need some refining of your questions (and not your finding, as they become irreversible, believe me :) ). 
However one thing is quite sure and guaranteed that all this ends up making your dissertation far better in knowledge that it creates and contributes to your area of research than what you actually expected while writing up your proposal.
While entering my ‘PhD Finale’ stage of dissertation writing, I am really confident that in the end, my research work (in the area of economic development [energy and development]) will substantially contribute to the present body of knowledge and research.
In the end, I would like to know what do you think about it? How different is your course of PhD Finale than mine? Look forward to your comments….
The Equal Burden of the Energy Poverty
Posted by Bilal Mirza in Research on December 18, 2009
I remember this day, time, location, surroundings and most importantly, the emotions of this young boy. He gave a glance of an extremely exhausted individual, yet with high determination and power. In his shabby outfit, he started starring at us while he was far-flung and barely noticeable to us, with question on his face concerning our presence in his poor village. The encounter with this kid carrying fuelwood (or firewood) over his head took place on the main street of village Salam Nagar of Lahore District, which is around 30 kilometres far from Lahore city. A relatively large community with nearly 700 households and around 4500-5000 inhabitants, it was an utter reflection of poverty, misery and pain, and what not!
Though households have the privileged to use electricity, but the main household predicament was inaccessibility to natural gas. This was the reason that, instead of exerting his efforts in his education, this young guy was looking after the energy problems of his dwelling. When asked what his family shall do with these dried wooden sticks, ‘we use them for cooking’, was his quick and well expected reply.
The picture always grips my personal attention and incessant thoughts about the future of this innocent boy, and many others like him, who are enormously effected by such hardships. In my personal view, these hardships, and consequently, the under-development of rural people shall remain their fate, until and unless, there is no solution for widespread energy poverty across Pakistan, and other developing countries, which not only ensures the access to better energy services (if not modern ones) but also their sustainability.
Let me know what do you think about all this, and what possible ways could relief this kid and many others like him suffering from extreme energy poverty.