Liter of Lights is the world’s largest community for solar energy projects, with a programme that has involved 20 countries with some 500,000 lights installed, but not only that. The project, which was conceived in order to develop sustainable lighting in disadvantaged communities around the world, is not just about installing lamps: it is the first NGO in the world that teaches local communities how to build their own solar lamps, thus ensuring the project’s continuity and sustainability.
Designed at the MIT, Liter of Light is a device consisting of a solar panel connected to a LED through a circuit, a rechargeable lithium battery and a plastic bottle. During the daytime it radiates solar light through the bottle. Then, after the sun sets, the stored energy keeps the LED working all through the night.
Yesterday, at the official opening of "Solutions/COP21" at the Grand Palais in Paris, Enel announced the launch of its partnership with Liter of Light. "The signing of this partnership agreement is a perfect example of how a company and a nonprofit organisation can work together to solve a number of global issues," said Enel Group’s Head of Sustainability Projects and Practice Sharing Maria Cristina Papetti. "This project trains people to make a lamp for easy and sustainable home or public lighting, facilitating access to electricity. We are very pleased to be working with such an innovative team like Liter of Light, it is a great opportunity for both organisations”.
“One of the problems in this field is that if you don’t teach the community how to fix technical problems or how to convert solar power into energy, they will always be depending from imported finished products”, explained Illac Angelo Diaz, Executive Director of the NGO. “The real solution is to make us of the wisdom and ingenuity of these communities. For example, if you teach women how to make solar lamps using materials easy available in their area, they will also know how to fix them, producing a virtuous circle of viral replication”.
"We are very happy to be partnered with Enel, a company that has already reached out what is called inclusive community”, Diaz went on to say. Bringing our technology, which was very successful in Asia, to all the other countries where Enel operates will allow us in, a very short time, to be able to impact as many people as possible.
Italy has been a source of inspiration for Liter of Light. "Another important fact and coincidence, which makes this agreement even more meaningful, is that is the whole electricity revolution began in Italy. Partnering with one of the biggest Italian companies allows us to go back to our roots and launch the second revolution, which will be a green revolution and will start not with one man only, but with a whole group of ambassadors and young people that will carry forward this movement which we have created" - concludes the Director of Liter of Light.
The photo gallery of the event at the Grand Palais is published on Flickr, while on YouTube there’s a video presentation of the project and a Maria Cristina Papetti interview.