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Tarvin Environment Group

20th November 2015 @ 6:06am – by Jim Wigan
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solaraid

How about considering a special ecological Christmas present this year?

Solaraid, www.solar-aid.org are planning to raise the funds required to get a solar lamp into every home in Africa by 2020.

Each lamp is charged by the sun during the day and gives four hours of light at night. These are making a big difference in Africa to children's homework, which used to be done by the light of a candle or smoky kerosene lamp. Shop owners are finding that they can keep their stalls open for longer in the evening, if they use the lamp.

If you get the right model of lamp it will also charge a mobile phone. I have heard of instances in Kenya where the owner of a phone currently has to walk 20 miles to get to a shop where he or she can recharge the phone.

Through Solaraid's campaign over a million lamps have been distributed so far and each lamp has a life of five years. Through the sale of lamps outside Africa, Solaraid raised enough to subsidise the distribution of the lamps in Africa so people can buy them for the cost of production. The saving of the cost of kerosene enables the owners to save the cost of the solar lamp in three months and the reduced use of kerosene improves people's health.

One year I gave solar lamps as Christmas presents, one to my sister who uses it on her boat when she is sewing in the evening. My son-in-law uses one in his workshop and I have one in my car, which is always fully charged and available.

Each lamp you buy will fund the distribution of three lamps in Africa. So far there are 10 million people with access to safe, clean solar light, $345 million saved by families, 5.8 million people noticing better health, 2 billion extra study hours for children, and 880,000 tonnes of CO₂ averted.

Ed: Solaraid is a UK International Charity, 1115960, and further details can be found at http://www.solar-aid.org

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