In December 2010, the United Nations General Assembly declared 2012 the International Year of Sustainable Energy for All, in recognition that access to affordable modern energy services is essential for sustainable development and for the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals.

We have been working for over three decades to get sustainable energy solutions to those who need them most. People whose daily struggle to fulfil their basic needs can be radically transformed with the aid of simple lighting, heating, cooling, mechanical and communication technologies.

We know from our work that improving energy access gives poor communities the power to challenge their poverty.

Yet we also know that our work alone is not enough reach the billions who currently have no access to clean, safe, modern energy.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon is leading a global initiative on Sustainable Energy for All (SE4ALL) to mobilise action from all sectors of society in support of three interlinked objectives to be achieved by 2030;

• providing universal access to modern energy services

• doubling the global rate of improvement in energy efficiency

• doubling the share of renewable energy in the global energy mix

It is therefore vital that we use the opportunity of the 2012 International Year of Sustainable Energy for All to speak for those people who don't have the power to speak for themselves and  to campaign for a global commitment to end energy poverty ensuring Energy for All 2030.

Find out more about the year at sustainableenergyforall.org