Solar Power Heroes
Sunday, October 4, 2009 at 9:47AM | Share Article Solar Power Heroes
by Deb Powers 
When I was growing up, I fell in love with the beautiful Elsa, the lioness star of the movie Born Free. My favorite television series was Daktari, a show about an animal clinic and research center in Africa. I don't remember the names of the human actors, but Clarence the Cross-eyed Lion and Judy the chimp are a part of my childhood. I marveled at the animals, fell in love with the scenery and the land, and never once wondered where the doctors got the electricity to power the electric lights and radio and communications equipment on which their missions relied. If I had wondered, I would never have thought twice about the need to transport kerosene and gasoline into remote areas to power base camps and outlying stations. After all, I grew up in a city where electricity and gas was a given - just flip a switch and it was on.
What's got me musing about this this morning is an article about a solar power hero from the San Francisco Chronicle. Stephen Gold is a San Francisco building contractor who specializes in plumbing and electrical supplies. He is also a long time fan of solar power - his own house sports solar panels. He also feels very strongly about the conservation of the wild habitat for the animals that call it home. As he told a reporter for the Chronicle, "You go into the bush and look in the eyes of another animal, and it changes you," he said. "I want future generations to see these animals."
A few years ago, he was attending a wildlife conservation workshop and heard one of the researchers complaining about power generation, and how unreliable electricity can make her research work so much more difficult. It occurred to him that kerosene and gasoline power generators might not be the ideal solution for powering research equipment in an unspoiled landscape. That started him on a quest to supply remote research stations with solar-powered generators and equipment.
Working with the National Conservation Society and major solar equipment suppliers, Gold has managed to outfit 11 research projects since 2006 with donated solar power generation equipment. For the past three years, he has used his home garage to store, assemble, package and ship solar power kits out to research projects in such far-flung places as Mongolia, Tanzania and Botswana.
His efforts have a huge impact on the lives of the researchers, who all put reliable power at the top of the list of things required for them to do their work. All agree that solar power is far more reliable than the generators on which they had been depending, and even those who are on the electrical grid find that the solar power is more reliable than grid power.
Solar Aid - Power to the People
Dr. Jeremy Leggett worked in the oil industry in the 1980s, until he became aware of the dangers of climate change and global warming. He left the oil companies to become a chief researcher with Greenpeace, and eventually founded his own company, Solarcentury. Solarcentury was dedicated to helping create a cleaner, safer world through distributed renewable energy. From its beginning, Solarcentury committed 5% of its profits to charity, going so far as to write it into the constitution of the company. In 2006 when Solarcentury made a profit, Leggett's corporation formed Solar Aid as an independent charity dedicated to bringing power to the people of developing nations in the form of distributed solar equipment.
Solar Aid has developed a model that they call microsolar, which the organization claims is more than a way to produce clean energy. It's a model that brings power to the people in more ways than one. According to Leggett, the average family in a developing nation spends up to 20% of its income on fuel for wood fires and power generators, and on batteries to power cell phones and other necessities. By providing individual solar energy generators, Solar Aid not only provides clean, reliable energy for the families, but frees up the income that had been devoted to cooking and powering their homes.
Solar Aid's mission goes much further than putting up solar panels on homes, though. On a smaller scale, the organization makes available solar lanterns with LED lamps, which can free a family from reliance on smoky fires for light at night. By providing solar generators, solar powered cell phones and solar powerd batteries, Solar Aid helps make the environment cleaner and the people safer. The organization works with local entrepreneurs and communities to bring solar power to schools, community centers and clinics in Tanzania, Argentina, Malawi and Zambia.
Powered by a Board of Directors drawn from high profile companies around the world, Solar Aid takes a progressive approach to charity. The organization does not just come in with a team and put up the generators, nor does its work end when the construction phase is complete. Instead, a large part of the mission is working with forward-thinking local entrepreneurs to hire and train workers and create micro-businesses that will survive and continue working and turning a profit even after Solar Aid's role has ended.
Learn more about Solar Aid microsolar solutions for developing nations
These are only two of the individuals and organizations that have stepped up to help bring solar power to places where it's sorely needed - and will do the most good. Do you know of a person or organization that's doing good work in the field of renewable energy and charity? i want to hear about them so that I can start to maintain an honor roll of solar power and renewble energy charities for those who want to put their money where it will serve a greater purpose.
Reader Comments (2)
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