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Table 1: The sustainability balance index for Kabakaburi village.

No. Sustainability Ballasts Indices

1 Bio-capacity Reserve 0.87

2 Equity & Equality 0.89
3 Social Capacity 0.78

4 Autonomy 0.7

5 Utility 0.5
6 Health 0.67

7 Education 0.75

8 Communication & IT 0.25

9 Products & Services 0.4
Sustainability Balance Index 0.60

4.2. Kabakaburi’s Sustainability Balance prosperity line. The main areas of surplus are in the
The development of the sustainability balance is bio-capacity and equity/equality. The community is
an outcome of the CARES approach presented by debt free and shows no sign of decline.
Blair et al . The results of the CARES workshops and
23
participatory approach inspired the development The communication ballast was the lowest since they
of the social ballasts. The ballast assessments as were no reliable telephone services in the area. In
described above were introduced to the residents addition, they were no large scale manufacturing or
and presented during a community meeting. The industries available locally, nevertheless, the supply
sustainability balance evaluation of Kabakaburi of income was addressed by residents leaving the
in Figure 3 presents the current condition of the community to take up jobs in towns, cities and
community. This evaluation is a pre-assessment overseas. While every home except for new builds
that would form the basis for comparison to any had solar PV systems and a small generator the
new interventions. Table 1, displays the scores of village did not have a small operational mini/micro
the different ballasts and the overall sustainability grid system that could allow for reductions in energy
balance index. supply cost compared to the individual power supply
systems that existed.
4.3. Results
The sustainability balance index for Kabakaburi is The ballast presented here can further inform the
0.60 which is within the prosperous operating range remote electricity engineering design process which
between the subsistence and prosperity lines. The can help in the implementation of appropriate
low to medium consumptive ballasts have 2 ballasts mechanisms for sustainable, remote electricity
(education and health) above the subsistence line. development that can provide for an improved
Electricity utility is at marginal subsistence while the standard of living.
communication and products & services ballasts
are impoverished. The medium to high resource 5. Discussion
ballasts, social capacity and autonomy are greater The ballasts system points out a range of conditions
and equal to 0.7, respectively and below the where investment may be most beneficial and how

23. Blair, N.; Pons, D.; Krumdieck, S. Electrification in Remote Communities: Assessing the Value of Electricity Using a Community Action Research Approach
in Kabakaburi, Guyana. Sustainability 2019, 11. Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute: Basel, Switzerland https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/11/9/2566
accessed 1 June, 2019, doi: 10.3390/su11092566.

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