Solar Electric Light Fund
Encyclopedia
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. 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
. 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
.
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 bank
s, aid agencies
, foundations, and philanthropic
individuals, who are committed to improving the health, education, and economic prospects of the world's poorest citizens.
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
.
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.
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.
.
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 part
s 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.
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. 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.
Development aid
Development aid or development cooperation is aid given by governments and other agencies to support the economic, environmental, social and political development of developing countries.It is distinguished...
organization working to end global poverty
Poverty
Poverty is the lack of a certain amount of material possessions or money. Absolute poverty or destitution is inability to afford basic human needs, which commonly includes clean and fresh water, nutrition, health care, education, clothing and shelter. About 1.7 billion people are estimated to live...
by bringing solar power
Solar 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...
and Internet
Internet
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
access to the world's poorest people in remote rural areas. SELF’s installations provide electricity
Electricity
Electricity is a general term encompassing a variety of phenomena resulting from the presence and flow of electric charge. These include many easily recognizable phenomena, such as lightning, static electricity, and the flow of electrical current in an electrical wire...
for homes, clinics, schools, village water pumps, vaccine refrigerators, drip irrigation
Drip irrigation
Drip irrigation, also known as trickle irrigation or microirrigation or localized irrigation , is an irrigation method which saves water and fertilizer by allowing water to drip slowly to the roots of plants, either onto the soil surface or directly onto the root zone, through a network of valves,...
farming and micro-enterprise
Micro-enterprise
A micro-enterprise is a type of small business, often registered, having five or fewer employees and requiring seed capital of not more than $35,000. The term is often used in Australia to refer to a business with a single owner-operator, and having up to 20 employees...
centers to improve the health, education, food supply and job opportunities for the two billion people living in energy poverty
Energy poverty
Energy Poverty is a term for a lack of access to electricity, heat, or other forms of Power. Often referring to the situation of peoples in the developing world, the term also implies any quality of life issues relating to this lack of access....
. SELF provides training in the set-up, installation and maintenance of the solar electric
Solar cell
A solar cell is a solid state electrical device that converts the energy of light directly into electricity by the photovoltaic effect....
and wireless
Wireless
Wireless telecommunications is the transfer of information between two or more points that are not physically connected. Distances can be short, such as a few meters for television remote control, or as far as thousands or even millions of kilometers for deep-space radio communications...
systems to enable communities to remain self-reliant.
SELF is a registered 501(c)(3) public charity
Charitable organization
A charitable organization is a type of non-profit organization . It differs from other types of NPOs in that it centers on philanthropic goals A charitable organization is a type of non-profit organization (NPO). It differs from other types of NPOs in that it centers on philanthropic goals A...
.
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
Energy
In physics, energy is an indirectly observed quantity. It is often understood as the ability a physical system has to do work on other physical systems...
is a human right. To meet global challenges such as food and water scarcity, climate change and poverty
Climate change and poverty
Climate change and poverty link a process and a condition that are interrelated. While the effects of climate change and global warming will have direct effects on the natural environment especially on agriculture, the impact on human civilization is also of concern...
, SELF works to assign greater priority to the importance of sustainable energy
Sustainable energy
Sustainable energy is the provision of energy that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs. Sustainable energy sources include all renewable energy sources, such as hydroelectricity, solar energy, wind energy, wave power, geothermal...
among international development bank
Development bank
The phrase development bank may refer to:* Community development banks fund low-income areas in the United States* Multilateral Development Bank provide financing for international development...
s, aid agencies
Aid agency
An aid agency is an organisation dedicated to distributing aid. Many professional aid organisations exist, both within government , between governments as multilateral donors and as private voluntary organizations...
, foundations, and philanthropic
Philanthropy
Philanthropy etymologically means "the love of humanity"—love in the sense of caring for, nourishing, developing, or enhancing; humanity in the sense of "what it is to be human," or "human potential." In modern practical terms, it is "private initiatives for public good, focusing on quality of...
individuals, who are committed to improving the health, education, and economic prospects of the world's poorest citizens.
In collaboration with government
Government
Government refers to the legislators, administrators, and arbitrators in the administrative bureaucracy who control a state at a given time, and to the system of government by which they are organized...
, industry
Industry
Industry refers to the production of an economic good or service within an economy.-Industrial sectors:There are four key industrial economic sectors: the primary sector, largely raw material extraction industries such as mining and farming; the secondary sector, involving refining, construction,...
and non-governmental organization
Non-governmental organization
A non-governmental organization is a legally constituted organization created by natural or legal persons that operates independently from any government. The term originated from the United Nations , and is normally used to refer to organizations that do not form part of the government and are...
partners, SELF has launched solar rural electrification
Rural electrification
Rural electrification is the process of bringing electrical power to rural and remote areas. Electricity is used not only for lighting and household purposes, but it also allows for mechanization of many farming operations, such as threshing, milking, and hoisting grain for storage; in areas...
projects in 18 countries: China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
, 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...
, Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent. Known until 1972 as Ceylon , Sri Lanka is an island surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait, and lies in the vicinity of India and the...
, 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...
, Vietnam
Vietnam
Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...
, Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
, South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
, Tanzania
Tanzania
The United Republic of Tanzania is a country in East Africa bordered by Kenya and Uganda to the north, Rwanda, Burundi, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the west, and Zambia, Malawi, and Mozambique to the south. The country's eastern borders lie on the Indian Ocean.Tanzania is a state...
, Uganda
Uganda
Uganda , officially the Republic of Uganda, is a landlocked country in East Africa. Uganda is also known as the "Pearl of Africa". It is bordered on the east by Kenya, on the north by South Sudan, on the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, on the southwest by Rwanda, and on the south by...
, Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe is a landlocked country located in the southern part of the African continent, between the Zambezi and Limpopo rivers. It is bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the southwest, Zambia and a tip of Namibia to the northwest and Mozambique to the east. Zimbabwe has three...
, Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
, Solomon Islands
Solomon Islands
Solomon Islands is a sovereign state in Oceania, east of Papua New Guinea, consisting of nearly one thousand islands. It covers a land mass of . The capital, Honiara, is located on the island of Guadalcanal...
, Bhutan
Bhutan
Bhutan , officially the Kingdom of Bhutan, is a landlocked state in South Asia, located at the eastern end of the Himalayas and bordered to the south, east and west by the Republic of India and to the north by the People's Republic of China...
, Nigeria
Nigeria
Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...
, Lesotho
Lesotho
Lesotho , officially the Kingdom of Lesotho, is a landlocked country and enclave, surrounded by the Republic of South Africa. It is just over in size with a population of approximately 2,067,000. Its capital and largest city is Maseru. Lesotho is a member of the Commonwealth of Nations. The name...
, and most recently in Benin
Benin
Benin , officially the Republic of Benin, is a country in West Africa. It borders Togo to the west, Nigeria to the east and Burkina Faso and Niger to the north. Its small southern coastline on the Bight of Benin is where a majority of the population is located...
, Burundi
Burundi
Burundi , officially the Republic of Burundi , is a landlocked country in the Great Lakes region of Eastern Africa bordered by Rwanda to the north, Tanzania to the east and south, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the west. Its capital is Bujumbura...
and Rwanda
Rwanda
Rwanda or , officially the Republic of Rwanda , is a country in central and eastern Africa with a population of approximately 11.4 million . Rwanda is located a few degrees south of the Equator, and is bordered by Uganda, Tanzania, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of the Congo...
.
History
SELF was founded in 1990 by Neville Williams, an award-winning journalist and author of Chasing the Sun: Solar Adventures Around the World. Williams had worked for the U.S. Department of Energy promoting solar power during the CarterJimmy Carter
James Earl "Jimmy" Carter, Jr. is an American politician who served as the 39th President of the United States and was the recipient of the 2002 Nobel Peace Prize, the only U.S. President to have received the Prize after leaving office...
administration.
In its early projects, SELF used funds provided by the World Bank
World Bank
The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans to developing countries for capital programmes.The World Bank's official goal is the reduction of poverty...
, 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
Microfinance
Microfinance is the provision of financial services to low-income clients or solidarity lending groups including consumers and the self-employed, who traditionally lack access to banking and related services....
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.
The programs yielded broad benefits. In much of the developing world, the primary fuel for night lighting is kerosene
Kerosene
Kerosene, sometimes spelled kerosine in scientific and industrial usage, also known as paraffin or paraffin oil in the United Kingdom, Hong Kong, Ireland and South Africa, is a combustible hydrocarbon liquid. The name is derived from Greek keros...
, 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
Carbon dioxide
Carbon dioxide is a naturally occurring chemical compound composed of two oxygen atoms covalently bonded to a single carbon atom...
(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
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
, Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
, and South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
. 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
Bangalore
Bengaluru , formerly called Bengaluru is the capital of the Indian state of Karnataka. Bangalore is nicknamed the Garden City and was once called a pensioner's paradise. Located on the Deccan Plateau in the south-eastern part of Karnataka, Bangalore is India's third most populous city and...
, India, whose goal was to sell SHS in the states of Karnataka
Karnataka
Karnataka , the land of the Kannadigas, is a state in South West India. It was created on 1 November 1956, with the passing of the States Reorganisation Act and this day is annually celebrated as Karnataka Rajyotsava...
and Andhra Pradesh
Andhra Pradesh
Andhra Pradesh , is one of the 28 states of India, situated on the southeastern coast of India. It is India's fourth largest state by area and fifth largest by population. Its capital and largest city by population is Hyderabad.The total GDP of Andhra Pradesh is $100 billion and is ranked third...
. 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
Clinton Foundation
The William J. Clinton Foundation is a foundation established by former President of the United States Bill Clinton with the stated mission to "strengthen the capacity of people throughout the world to meet the challenges of global interdependence." The Foundation focuses on four critical areas:...
and Partners In Health
Partners In Health
Partners In Health is a Boston, Massachusetts-based non-profit health care organization dedicated to providing a "preferential option for the poor". It was founded in 1987 by Dr. Paul Farmer, Ophelia Dahl, Thomas J. White, Todd McCormack, and Dr...
(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
Steel Pulse
Steel Pulse is a roots reggae musical band. They originally formed at Handsworth Wood Boys School, in Birmingham, England, composed of David Hinds , Basil Gabbidon , and Ronald McQueen .-History:...
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
Partners In Health
Partners In Health is a Boston, Massachusetts-based non-profit health care organization dedicated to providing a "preferential option for the poor". It was founded in 1987 by Dr. Paul Farmer, Ophelia Dahl, Thomas J. White, Todd McCormack, and Dr...
. 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 ecosystemEcosystem
An ecosystem is a biological environment consisting of all the organisms living in a particular area, as well as all the nonliving , physical components of the environment with which the organisms interact, such as air, soil, water and sunlight....
.
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
Rural
Rural areas or the country or countryside are areas that are not urbanized, though when large areas are described, country towns and smaller cities will be included. They have a low population density, and typically much of the land is devoted to agriculture...
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
Microcredit
Microcredit is the extension of very small loans to those in poverty designed to spur entrepreneurship. These individuals lack collateral, steady employment and a verifiable credit history and therefore cannot meet even the most minimal qualifications to gain access to traditional credit...
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 part
Spare part
Spare Parts may also refer to:* Spare Parts , by Status Quo* Spare Parts is a Doctor Who audio drama.* Spare Parts , by Servotron* "Spare Parts" , by Bruce Springsteen* "Spare Parts"...
s 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 offsetCarbon offset
A carbon offset is a reduction in emissions of carbon dioxide or greenhouse gases made in order to compensate for or to offset an emission made elsewhere....
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. 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- Amazon Association
- Centre for Renewable Energy, Kathmandu
- Clinton HIV/AIDS Initiative
- Columbia UniversityColumbia UniversityColumbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
's Mailman School of Public Health - Dell Computers South Africa
- Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund
- Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS FoundationElizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS FoundationThe Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation is a nonprofit organization dedicated to preventing pediatric HIV infection and eliminating pediatric AIDS through research, advocacy, and prevention and treatment programs...
- eKhaya ICT (South Africa)
- Guadalcanal Rural Electrification Agency (GREA)
- Habitat for Humanity InternationalHabitat for Humanity InternationalHabitat For Humanity International , generally referred to as Habitat for Humanity or simply Habitat, is an international, non-governmental, non-profit organization devoted to building "simple, decent, and affordable" housing, a self-described "Christian housing ministry." The international...
- Institute for Sustainable Energy and Development
- International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid TropicsInternational Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid TropicsThe International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid-Tropics is a non-profit organization in India.It was founded in 1972 by a consortium of organizations convened by the Ford and the Rockefeller Foundations. Its charter was signed by the FAO and the UNDP...
(ICRISAT) - Jane Goodall InstituteJane Goodall InstituteThe Jane Goodall Institute is an international wildlife and environment conservation organization with branches in many countries. It was founded in 1977 by English primatologist Dr...
- Jigawa StateJigawa State-Location:Jigawa State is one of thirty-six states that constitute Federal Republic of Nigeria. It is situated in the north-western part of the country between latitudes 11.00oN to 13.00oN and longitudes 8.00oE to 10.15oE. Kano State and Katsina State border Jigawa to the west, Bauchi State to the...
government
- LearnThings (South Africa)
- Make It Right project
- Millennium Villages ProjectMillennium Villages ProjectThe Millennium Villages Project is a project of the Earth Institute at Columbia University, the United Nations Development Programme, and Millennium Promise....
- National Renewable Energy LaboratoryNational Renewable Energy LaboratoryThe National Renewable Energy Laboratory , located in Golden, Colorado, is the United States' primary laboratory for renewable energy and energy efficiency research and development. The National Renewable Energy Laboratory is a government-owned, contractor-operated facility; it is funded through...
- Nelson MandelaNelson MandelaNelson Rolihlahla Mandela served as President of South Africa from 1994 to 1999, and was the first South African president to be elected in a fully representative democratic election. Before his presidency, Mandela was an anti-apartheid activist, and the leader of Umkhonto we Sizwe, the armed wing...
Institute - Oprah WinfreyOprah WinfreyOprah Winfrey is an American media proprietor, talk show host, actress, producer and philanthropist. Winfrey is best known for her self-titled, multi-award-winning talk show, which has become the highest-rated program of its kind in history and was nationally syndicated from 1986 to 2011...
Foundation - Partners In HealthPartners In HealthPartners In Health is a Boston, Massachusetts-based non-profit health care organization dedicated to providing a "preferential option for the poor". It was founded in 1987 by Dr. Paul Farmer, Ophelia Dahl, Thomas J. White, Todd McCormack, and Dr...
- Royal Society for Protection of Nature, BhutanRoyal Society for Protection of Nature, BhutanThe Royal Society for the Protection of Nature is Bhutan's first and only private nonprofit organization with nation-wide operations...
- Stanford UniversityStanford UniversityThe Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
, Institute for Food Security and the Environment - United NationsUnited NationsThe United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
- U.S. Department of Energy
- Vietnam Women's Union (VWU)
- Village Health Works
- World Bank Development Marketplace
Awards
- 2008 – Tech Awards Laureate, Tech Museum of Innovation
- 2007 – Energy Globe Award - Benin
- 2006 – Development Marketplace, World BankWorld BankThe World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans to developing countries for capital programmes.The World Bank's official goal is the reduction of poverty...
- 2005 – Chevron Conservation AwardChevron CorporationChevron Corporation is an American multinational energy corporation headquartered in San Ramon, California, United States and active in more than 180 countries. It is engaged in every aspect of the oil, gas, and geothermal energy industries, including exploration and production; refining,...
- 2002 – Tech Awards Laureate, Tech Museum of Innovation
- 1998 – Green Cross Millennium Award, Global Green USAGlobal Green USAGlobal Green USA is the U.S. arm of Green Cross International. It is one of 30 national offices with over 70 professional staff worldwide. Global Green USA is a national environmental organization.-References:*, Global Green USA Website...
Videos
- CNN Inside Africa – South Africa
- CNN Global Challenges – Brazil
- CNN Global Challenges - Nigeria
- Catch the Sun: SELF in the Solomon Islands
- Bhutan: On the Wings of Light, Part 1
- Bhutan: On the Wings of Light, Part 2
- Solar drip irrigation project - Benin, West Africa
- SELF wins Chevron Conservation Award 2005
External links
- SELF Website
- Tech Awards Laureates 2008
- Renewable Energy World
- Village Health Works
- Sun Crystals partners with SELF
- Change.org
- Global Giving
- GuideStar Basic Listing
- Make It Right Foundation
- Interview with Executive Director Robert Freling
- Interview with Robert Freling by Massive Change
- Diary of installation of solar cells in Nigeria, 2003 from Grist Magazine
- End Poverty: Millennium Development Goals
- United Nations Development Programme: Environment and Energy
- United Nations Report: The Energy Challenge for Achieving the Millennium Development Goals
- How Renewable Energy Can Help Combat Poverty