SolarLEAP
Encyclopedia
SolarLEAP is a company founded in Hong Kong
with the mission of providing educational technology to impoverished students, specifically solar-powered computers. The company has worked on projects in Nepal
, Ghana
, the Philippines, India
and Ethiopia
.
computers, pre-loaded with educational software, to schools in third-world countries. As of 2011, SolarLEAP had completed projects in 5 countries and had distributed more than 125 computers. The machines run on 12 volt power supplies connected to solar panels and, with 1.6GHz Intel Atom
processors, 250GB of hard disk
space and 2GB of RAM
, are capable of supporting either Linux
/Ubuntu
or Windows
operating systems.
. Initially, Watson was the only member of the company, providing updates to a small circle of friends and family on his personal blog. However, his project quickly gained notoriety, and was noticed by Hong Kong NGO Sow Asia, which provided SolarLEAP with contacts in the non-profit industry and linked him up with support from significant corporations, such as Citi and Deutsche Bank
.
With the initial challenges of starting a company conquered, Watson deferred his admission to the University of Illinois in favor of working to further establish SolarLEAP in the NGO community. The company grew in size and scope during 2010, expanding its operations to the Philippines
, India
and Ethiopia
.
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
with the mission of providing educational technology to impoverished students, specifically solar-powered computers. The company has worked on projects in Nepal
Nepal
Nepal , officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked sovereign state located in South Asia. It is located in the Himalayas and bordered to the north by the People's Republic of China, and to the south, east, and west by the Republic of India...
, Ghana
Ghana
Ghana , officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country located in West Africa. It is bordered by Côte d'Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, Togo to the east, and the Gulf of Guinea to the south...
, the Philippines, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
and Ethiopia
Ethiopia
Ethiopia , officially known as the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. It is the second-most populous nation in Africa, with over 82 million inhabitants, and the tenth-largest by area, occupying 1,100,000 km2...
.
Operations
SolarLEAP provides proprietary solar-poweredSolar power
Solar energy, radiant light and heat from the sun, has been harnessed by humans since ancient times using a range of ever-evolving technologies. Solar radiation, along with secondary solar-powered resources such as wind and wave power, hydroelectricity and biomass, account for most of the available...
computers, pre-loaded with educational software, to schools in third-world countries. As of 2011, SolarLEAP had completed projects in 5 countries and had distributed more than 125 computers. The machines run on 12 volt power supplies connected to solar panels and, with 1.6GHz Intel Atom
Intel Atom
Intel Atom is the brand name for a line of ultra-low-voltage x86 and x86-64 CPUs from Intel, designed in 45 nm CMOS and used mainly in netbooks, nettops, embedded application ranging from health care to advanced robotics and Mobile Internet devices...
processors, 250GB of hard disk
Hard disk
A hard disk drive is a non-volatile, random access digital magnetic data storage device. It features rotating rigid platters on a motor-driven spindle within a protective enclosure. Data is magnetically read from and written to the platter by read/write heads that float on a film of air above the...
space and 2GB of RAM
Random-access memory
Random access memory is a form of computer data storage. Today, it takes the form of integrated circuits that allow stored data to be accessed in any order with a worst case performance of constant time. Strictly speaking, modern types of DRAM are therefore not random access, as data is read in...
, are capable of supporting either Linux
Linux
Linux is a Unix-like computer operating system assembled under the model of free and open source software development and distribution. The defining component of any Linux system is the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released October 5, 1991 by Linus Torvalds...
/Ubuntu
Ubuntu (operating system)
Ubuntu is a computer operating system based on the Debian Linux distribution and distributed as free and open source software. It is named after the Southern African philosophy of Ubuntu...
or Windows
Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...
operating systems.
History
SolarLEAP was founded in 2009 by Charles Watson, a young entrepreneur, during a gap yearGap year
An expression or phrase that is associated with taking time out to travel in between life stages. It is also known as sabbatical, time off and time out that refers to a period of time in which students disengage from curricular education and undertake non curricular activities, such as travel or...
. Initially, Watson was the only member of the company, providing updates to a small circle of friends and family on his personal blog. However, his project quickly gained notoriety, and was noticed by Hong Kong NGO Sow Asia, which provided SolarLEAP with contacts in the non-profit industry and linked him up with support from significant corporations, such as Citi and Deutsche Bank
Deutsche Bank
Deutsche Bank AG is a global financial service company with its headquarters in Frankfurt, Germany. It employs more than 100,000 people in over 70 countries, and has a large presence in Europe, the Americas, Asia Pacific and the emerging markets...
.
With the initial challenges of starting a company conquered, Watson deferred his admission to the University of Illinois in favor of working to further establish SolarLEAP in the NGO community. The company grew in size and scope during 2010, expanding its operations to the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
and Ethiopia
Ethiopia
Ethiopia , officially known as the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. It is the second-most populous nation in Africa, with over 82 million inhabitants, and the tenth-largest by area, occupying 1,100,000 km2...
.