Thanks to the magic of Twitter, yesterday I discovered what sounds like an amazing company, providing both entrepreneurial opportunities and sustainable energy to women in sub-Saharan Africa. Thanks to Feelgood Style and Green Marketing TV I learned about Solar Sister, a company with a self-described “Avon style for-women, by-women business model” that helps bring solar lighting to homes that have traditionally been lit with kerosene and other less-than-sustainable materials.
You can read the full interview with Solar Sister founder and CEO, Katherine Lucey, over at Green Marketing TV, but the bit about what inspired the company to start is what really caught my attention:
Where did the inspiration for Solar Sister come from?
1.6 billion people on the planet don’t have access to electricity. They rely on kerosene lanterns and candles for light. They spend up to 40% of their family income on energy that is inefficient, insufficient and hazardous. Widespread use of kerosene has an adverse impact on local air quality as well as on global climate change. Poor lighting, smoke and rudimentary lanterns are responsible for large number of infections and burn injuries. Solar Sister creates critical, lasting change in the lives of women and girls living with the devastating effects of energy poverty.
A founding story of Solar Sister is the story of Rebecca, a rural farmer in Mpigi, Uganda, who chose to put a solar light in her chicken room. Rebecca knew that chickens only eat when they can see, and by increasing the hours of light, the chickens ate more, and were healthier. They laid more eggs, improving the economics of her operation and providing income that allowed her to buy seeds, and eventually a goat, pigs, and even a cow.
From the simple improvement of a single light, Rebecca built a farm and eventually a school where she teaches children to read and write, and also how to do small plot farming. Realizing that women like Rebecca have the power to improve their own lives, with a little bit of light and opportunity. [via Green Marketing TV]
When there is so much going wrong in the world, it’s projects like this one that give me hope. If you want to learn more about Solar Sister and how you can get involved, check out their website.
