Solar Energy Solutions in Nepal

Photography by Kristin Lau www.kristinlau.com

Lead by American documentary photographer Kristin Lau, Voltaic will be sponsoring an upcoming trip to Nepal. Together with Sunfarmer and Photographers Without Borders, Kristin’s project will lead her team through some of the most energy poor regions of Nepal documenting the many causes and effects of life without electricity.

Please take a moment to read Kristin’s insights below. You can support her project here.

LIGHT FOR LIFE. SOLAR ENERGY SOLUTIONS IN NEPAL

Imagine a life without electricity.

With no lights, electric stove, or water pump, women and children from rural communities must travel miles to fetch clean, safe drinking water and firewood. At home, an open fire is all that is available for cooking, increasing the risk of lung and heart disease. In hospitals, babies are born in the dark and many do not survive. Giving birth at a clinic that lacks air conditioning and modern medical equipment and vaccines, which require refrigeration, leave children vulnerable to diseases. After school in the evenings, children must study by the light of a kerosene lamp. Earning a living in these conditions is tough. No electricity means no work.

Such is the plight of 2.5 billion people around the world.

In Nepal, two-thrids of the population lack access to reliable electricity. For those lucky enough to have a grid connection, the average power outage is 9 hours each day; during the dry season this can reach over 20 hours. In addition, many traditional energy sources are highly destructive to the environment. Lack of access to electricity prevents access to high quality healthcare, education, water and other services that are fundamental to alleviation of poverty and an improved quality of life.

Light for Life: Solar Energy in Nepal is a mixed media documentary project that harnesses the power of visual communication through storytelling, photography and videography to raise awareness for solar energy solutions in Nepal. As the country continues to rebuild solar energy, now more than ever, has become a feasible and powerful solution. American documentary photographer Kristin Lau, has been selected by non-profit organization Photographers Without Borders to organize and direct the project. A crowdfunding campaign has been launched in support of Kristin’s project for Nepal. Check out the project’s campaign video and website here for support: www.nepalsolarlightforlife.com

Photographers Without Borders (PWB) is a non-profit collective of journalists, photographers, filmmakers and passionate storytellers dedicated to documenting and producing stories and content that inspires understanding of the world. Through a partnership with Photographers Without Borders and SunFarmer, a non-profit organization focused on delivering solar power to developing countries, Kristin will be returning to Nepal in the fall to document and build awareness on the impact of the work of SunFarmer on local Nepalese communities and the difficulties of life without electricity due to energy poverty. SunFarmer delivers robust solar energy systems to communities removed from a major grid source. More than two billion people live without access to a steady source of electricity, a problem that can be remedied by harnessing sunlight, the one resource many of these regions have in abundance.

We all have a fundamental right to reliable energy access. Addressing and raising awareness to alleviate energy poverty is Kristin’s main priority and this project’s mission. Kristin’s goal with her photography is to build awareness around humanitarian and environmental issues globally. She focuses on documenting the candid and capturing moments that inspire a call-to-action.

Check out the project’s crowd funding page to donate and help: org.grouprev.com/sunfarmer  We encourage you to support, contribute and promote this project in any way that you can to help raise awareness for solar energy solutions in Nepal.

Kristin Lau is an American documentary photographer based in Toronto. You can follow her on Facebook and Twitter and view her portfolio at www.kristinlau.com