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Solar Electric Light Fund
Founded1990 by Neville Williams in the U.S.
TypeNon-profit
Non-governmental organisation (NGO)
HeadquartersWashington, DC
Location
  • global
Servicessolar rural electrification, carbon offsets, consulting, direct-appeal campaigns, public speaking
Fieldsdevelopment aid, health, education, wireless communications
Key people
Robert Freling, Executive Director
Board of Directors: Ed Begley, Jr., John Paul DeJoria, Freeman Dyson, Larry Hagman, Mary Swig, Steven Swig
Websitehttp://www.self.org

The Solar Electric Light Fund (SELF) is an international development aid organization working to end global poverty by bringing solar power and Internet access to the world's poorest people in remote rural areas.[1] SELF’s installations provide electricity for homes, clinics, schools, village water pumps, vaccine refrigerators, drip irrigation farming and micro-enterprise centers to improve the health, education, food supply and job opportunities for the two billion people living in energy poverty.[2] SELF provides training in the set-up, installation and maintenance of the solar electric and wireless systems to enable communities to remain self-reliant.

SELF is a registered 501(c)(3) public charity.

Mission and Organization

SELF’s mission is to provide solar power and wireless communications to a quarter of the world’s population living in energy poverty. Acting as a catalyst, SELF provides technical and financial assistance to empower these people to change their lives.

SELF believes that energy is a human right. To meet global challenges such as food and water scarcity, climate change and poverty, SELF works to assign greater priority to the importance of sustainable energy among international development banks, aid agencies, foundations, and philanthropic individuals, who are committed to improving the health, education, and economic prospects of the world's poorest citizens.[3]

In collaboration with government, industry and non-governmental organization partners, SELF has launched solar rural electrification projects in 18 countries: China, India, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Vietnam, Indonesia, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda, Zimbabwe, Brazil, Solomon Islands, Bhutan, Nigeria, Lesotho, and most recently in Benin, Burundi and Rwanda.[4]


History

SELF was founded in 1990 by Neville Williams, an award-winning journalist and author of Chasing the Sun: Solar Adventures Around the World.[5] Williams had worked for the U.S. Department of Energy promoting solar power during the Carter administration. In its early projects, SELF used funds provided by the World Bank, private philanthropies and development agencies to buy enough modest home-size Solar Home Systems (SHS) for one small village at a time. SELF developed a microfinance program to help villagers purchase the systems for their homes, and established local dealerships and trained members of the community as solar installers and technicians.[6]


The programs yielded broad benefits. In much of the developing world, the primary fuel for night lighting is kerosene, which causes more than 20,000 injuries and house fires annually through spills and explosions. In addition, each kerosene-fueled lamp emits an average of 6 tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) into the atmosphere annually, and exposes family members to hazardous fumes the equivalent of smoking two packs of cigarettes per day.

SELF’s goal was to pave the way for the commercialization of solar household electrification in the developing world. By 1997, SELF had established 11 self-sustaining solar energy projects in 11 countries across Asia, Africa, and South America. Through pilot projects around the world, SELF demonstrated the willingness of rural families to pay for solar electricity at the household level when they are given access to credit.


In 1997 SELF launched a for-profit affiliate, the Solar Electric Light Company (SELCO), in Bangalore, India, whose goal was to sell SHS in the states of Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh. SELCO sold close to 90,000 solar home systems in India. Williams stepped down from his role with SELF to run SELCO International, and SELF’s board of directors appointed Robert A. Freling as executive director.


Over the next few years, SELF continued to expand the use of solar energy for a broader range of development objectives. In 2000, SELF launched its next generation of community-wide projects to harness solar energy for advancing water pumping and purification; providing electricity to rural schools, health clinics and micro-enterprises; and facilitating access to wireless communications. More recently, SELF worked with the Clinton Foundation and Partners In Health (PIH) to launch solar energy solutions for a series of rural health centers in Rwanda and Tanzania.

In 2010, the grammy-winning reggae band Steel Pulse released a single Hold On 4 Haiti - 100% of the proceeds go to Haiti - to solar electrify health clinics through SELF and Partners In Health. The song is available for download exclusively at holdon4haiti.org.

Projects

SELF designs its projects to honor the integrity of indigenous cultures and respect the delicate balance of the local and global ecosystem.

Solar Home Systems

For much of the 1990s, SELF’s primary mission was to deliver solar home systems (SHS)—50 watt units installed at the household level that could generate enough power to run a few compact fluorescent lights, a radio, and a small black and white television for four or five hours each evening. The electricity generated by the solar panel is stored in a battery, which provides power at night and during rainy weather.

Solar Integrated Development (SID) Model

Over time, SELF’s projects began to develop more complexity. SELF’s Solar Integrated Development (SID) Model, or "whole village" model, is based on three principles:


SELF-Help: Solar electrification projects are chosen by the people in rural communities as full participants, acting on their own behalf. The villagers determine priorities as well as the project scope.


SELF-Reliance: Solar systems are purchased by villagers through microcredit financing. Each family pays for its own system and participates in the ownership of community systems, spreading development funds further to help more people.


SELF-Determination: Villagers, both men and women, are trained to install, maintain and replicate their solar systems. In addition, a store of spare parts is provided as part of the initial project funding. Local partners are assisted in establishing a supply chain for continuing purchase of spare parts.


Each project flows from the needs and leadership of the community. The community is committed to and empowered by full participation in all project phases including design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation.

Carbon offset services

SELF provides carbon offset services for businesses, NGOs and special events. The average U.S. citizen produces five U.S. tons of CO2 a year through electricity, home heating, vehicle use and airplane travel. Contributions to SELF’s Carbon Offset Program provide a way to neutralize the effect of those emissions an individual or business cannot reduce. In the United States, these contributions are tax-deductible.


When SELF installs a $400 solar photovoltaic (PV) home system in a remote rural village, it replaces kerosene as the main source of lighting. This offsets the six (U.S.) tons of CO2 that would have been released into the atmosphere over the system’s 20-year lifetime.[7] When the contribution of $400 is invested in a revolving microloan fund, it enables the future financing of 6.6 solar home systems over the same 20-year period. This will offset about 40 tons (6.6 systems x six tons per system = 39.6 tons) of CO2, for a price of about $10 per ton.

Partnerships

In alphabetical order

Awards

References

  1. ^ "About SELF".
  2. ^ REN21 or Renewable Energy Policy Network. 2005. “Energy for Development: The Potential Role of Renewable Energy in Meeting the Millennium Development Goals.” Washington, DC: Worldwatch Institute.
  3. ^ "Our Mission". Solar Electric Light Fund.
  4. ^ "Projects". Solar Electric Light Fund.
  5. ^ Williams, Neville (2005). Chasing the Sun: Solar Adventures Around the World. New Society Publishers. ISBN 0865715378.
  6. ^ "Historical Overview of SELF".
  7. ^ "Go Carbon Neutral". Solar Electric Light Fund.

Further reading

  • Dauncey, Guy (2001). Stormy Weather: 101 Solutions to Global Climate Change. New Society Publishers. ISBN 0865714215.
  • Friedman, Thomas (2008). Hot, Flat and Crowded. Farrar, Straus and Giroux. ISBN 0-374-16685-4. {{cite book}}: Check |first= value (help)
  • Green, Martin (2000). Power to the People. University of New South Wales Press. ISBN 0-86840-554-X.
  • Kidder, Tracy (2003). Mountains Beyond Mountains. Random House. ISBN 0375506160. {{cite book}}: Check |first= value (help)
  • Williams, Neville (2005). Chasing the Sun: Solar Adventures Around the World. New Society Publishers. ISBN 0865715378.

Videos

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