IEEE Technology and Society Magazine - September 2019 - 45

n 2017 Hurricanes Irma and María hit Puerto Rico (PR) and the U.S. Virgin Islands,
and proved that the centralized power system model is vulnerable and inadequate in
regions prone to natural disasters. Distributed energy resources (DERs) represent
opportunities to increase the use of renewable energy while improving preparedness and resiliency in the Caribbean, and while also enabling local
socio-economic activities. Social considerations related to DERs include those related to transforming
users from passive consumers to active energy actors. To develop recommendations to improve community-based DER initiatives in suppor t of sust a inability and resiliency, the authors employed
interactions and work from engineering and social
science students, as well as meetings with community leaders. Emphasizing a sense of community, social capital, and empowerment were identified as essential aspects for the success of a community-based
project. A framework that emphasizes human behavior within the environment (natural and social) was
suggested to guide community DER efforts, both
within the community and also to deal with external
factors such as government policies and social misconceptions. Although this article focuses on Puerto
Rico as a test case, the recommendations are applicable to other tropical regions, as well as other isolated areas with weak electric power systems.

Isolated by Hurricane Maria
Imagine you are 1000 miles away from your loved ones
when disaster hits. Imagine you cannot communicate
with them for days, not knowing if they are ok, if they
are injured, if your home is safe for them. Or maybe you
are in the disaster zone. You, your family, and your
neighbors are alone, communications are down, and
there is no news of what's happening or if the worst is
over. You know the local government will not reach you
for days; you have no idea how long it will be before the
state or Federal government show up.
This was the reality of the authors when Hurricane
María hit Puerto Rico on September 20, 2017. They live
on the western side of Puerto Rico, which for days
remained out of communication from the main emergency response center in the capital city of San Juan on
the northeast side of the main island. Hurricane María
felled 757 transmission line towers, 107 at 230 kV and
650 at 115 kV. In addition, 1247 transmission line segments suffered conductor or insulator damage. The
damage to the distribution system, particularly on the
eastern side of the Island, was even worse [1], [27].
The aftermath of Hurricanes Irma and María in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands showed that the
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current expensive, centralized, and fossil-fuel based
power system cannot properly address the Caribbean
region's needs during and after natural disasters. Distributed energy resources and systems could replace a
significant part of the demand served by the current
infrastructure, and begin a transition towards a renewable energy future. A Caribbean island could be divided
into regions or local systems, which could be based on
community microgrids [28]. During contingencies, such
as a downed power line, when centralized power might
be unavailable, DERs could provide basic electricity
needs and help re-establish normal operation of the
power infrastructure. During normal operation, a constant energy source - alternating between local generation and the central grid - would provide electricity
around the clock.
Community-led efforts often yield better results
for dealing with local problems than top -down
approaches [21], [29]. Combining existing community
leadership with distributed energy resources could
enable local energy options in support of socioeconomic development, community well-being, and
increased resiliency and emergency preparedness
[1], [29]. An NSF-supported project at the University of
Puerto Rico-Mayagüez (UPRM) strived to integrate
social sciences, computer science, and electrical
engineering researchers in support of communitybased DER alternatives [2].
An important task faced by the group was the need
to develop a common terminology to deal with the
complexities of the proposed electric transformation.
Creating this shared, transdisciplinary framework was
in itself a challenge that required identifying the following best practices: communication styles that support
creating a shared work space, respect for all ideas and
openness to criticism, capacity building activities to
reach a minimum understanding of other disciplines,
frequent meetings, and electronic communications [3].
Using those best practices, four undergraduate engineering students collaborated with two social science
students to study solar communities and microgrids.
An engineering professor, experienced with energy policy and engineering ethics served as mentor for the
group. The engineering students worked on the electrical design of a community microgrid with support
from the social science students (one from psychology
and the other from political science). With the knowledge gained from their interactions with engineering
students, the social science students pondered some
of the social implications of community-based DERs.
Thus, this experience served as capacity building for
all students.
This work is a continuation of a collaboration between
the community board and the professor that started in

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IEEE Technology and Society Magazine - September 2019

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