Brighter Homes, Brighter Futures
You can significantly improve a child's life by providing
light. Something so simple and taken for granted, but when a child does not
have light at home by which to study, how can they be expected to succeed?
The idea is simple: provide the community of Egoli in Cape
Town, where homes are not electrified and 5 taps provide water to 400
households, with a cheap, sustainable source of household lighting.
The people
On the
outskirts of the city of Cape Town lies Egoli, an informal settlement comprised
of tin shanties and dirt roads. It is an area known for high unemployment
rates, dismal sanitation, homes without electricity, and a lack of basic public services. This
lack of development in such a large community stems from the end of apartheid,
when people were just looking for a place to live and found this massive tract
of unused land.
There's a problem though, as Egoli exists on private land with a less-than-savory owner who refuses to let the city build on the land and provide even the most basic of services. We hope to address the basic needs of Egoli in spite of these huge political barriers.
The project
Our
study abroad program has developed a relationship with Egoli over the past few
years, and students from all over the United States have been coming together
to empower the people there. Such projects have expanded a community center,
built a library, expand water accessibility, provided school supplies, and
picked up trash around the area.
Our project is simple: buy solar
light jars to increase accessibility to sustainable lighting for households and
students in the community. Several families in Egoli have been supplied these
lights by an earlier group, and the community now asks for many more. They cost
about $20 each, and we hope to purchase as many as possible. With your help, we can improve the quality of life for many children.
The problem
Students
have no light by which to study. To complete work, they are forced to stay at
school until it is dangerous to walk home, or go to a better-off relative's
home, or try to read by candlelight. Students don't feel empowered to complete
school and often drop out in high school. Even learners that want to do well have
the odds stacked against them because they aren't able to perform in school.
The solution
A South
African company called Consol (click here) makes solar light jars. Imagine a glass canning
jar topped with a small solar panel and LED lights inside the lid. Families and
children are able to utilize their simple design to illuminate large areas for
zero additional cost, a huge benefit over candles. They are completely safe,
eco-friendly, sustainable, and have been proven already to significantly improve light in a house. We will work with the community leaders to identify
which households are most in need of this valuable resource, and we hope that
this simple device can brighten the future for Egoli.