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| Boyax Enriquez of Hybrid Social Solutions (HSS) shows Malungon community center staff how to maintain a solar lamp. HSS educates users of solar energy systems on how to use these for development. |
The homes of twelve B'laan families living off-grid are now
better lit at night with solar lamps from Stiftung Solarenergie (StS) Solar
Energy Foundation-Philippines.
Recipients of the lamps are involved with the Center for Community Transformation (CCT) as
micro finance partners, as members of savings circles, as preschool students,
or as members of the CCT Community Church in Malungon, Saranggani.
The lamps were brought to the CCT community center in
Malungon, Sarangani in May 2011 by motorcycle enthusiasts involved in the
foundation's Ride
for Light campaign, an effort to bring solar-powered energy
systems to rural communities that still do not enjoy the convenience of
electricity.
According to the StS website, one out of four Filipinos
lives without electricity, mostly using kerosene lamps at night. Aside
from posing a fire hazard, kerosene lamps shed dim light and give off
toxic fumes that harm the lungs.
In comparison, solar lamps are smoke-free. School children can use them for reading and studying at night. They can be hung like lanterns to light family meals, community meetings or social events. They may be used as flashlights and as cell phone chargers. They are waterproof and can be used in rainy weather and on boats.
Solar panels charge the lamps during the day. When
fully charged, a lamp on a low setting can light a hut or a small room for 100
hours.
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| This solar lamp gives light for 100 hours on a low setting, 21 hours on medium, and nine hours on high. It comes with eight plugs for charging common types of mobile phones. Photo courtesy of Boyax Enriquez. |
The lamps were distributed by CCT staff to the B'laan families during a Father's Day activity in June 2012.
The Malungon community is the second of two CCT communities
to receive solar lamps from StS. The first community visited by the
'Light Riders' was the Kaibigan
Village for former street dwellers in Nueva Ecija. The
'Light Riders' visited 39 other communities nationwide in their 19-day trip in
April and May 2011.
Other solar lamp distribution activities of the StS
include Hike for Light where
mountain climbers brought solar lamps to families living on Mt. Apo and five
other mountains, and Sail for Light in
which sailors brought solar lamps to fishing communities in Coron, El Nido, and
Culion in Palawan. Run
for Light at Bonifacio Global City
in Taguig which raised funds for more solar lamps.
