SolarGoodWill Helps Uganda Communities

SolarGoodWill.org expert Brian Clark taught local residents how to build solar panels to provide electricity for their homes during a recent trip to Uganda. The goal of the 3 week trip was to help members of the Mount Elgon Self-Help Community Project learn to build homemade solar panels for residential use and to power irrigation pump for the local villages. Mt. Elgon Self-Help Community Project is located on the on the Ugandan/Kenyan border and is dedicated to improving the quality of life for orphans and other children who have been affected by poverty, conflict and disease. Many of the homes were without electricity, so Brian had to begin his 2-week workshop by teaching electricity basics and solar fundamentals before building the actual solar panels. Next came evaluating individual customer’s energy needs. Most villagers had cell phones, so the workshop included building a small residential solar electric system that could charge them along with generating power for LEDs to light the houses.