A project called "Liter of Light" hopes to bring light to places that need it most, using DIY lighting fixtures made from plastic bottles.
One of the immediate effects of natural disasters, like the hurricane that recently devastated Haiti, is that it is often followed by darkness. It takes months for reinforcement, and in this case light, to reach the most remote places.
On a daily basis, over 1.5 billion people face complete darkness or at best the dim light of candles or kerosene lamps, whose fumes are poisonous.
An open-source project called "Liter of Light" is trying to change that, using plastic bottles to make simple solar lights.
How it works
The plastic bottles are filled with water and bleach, which eliminates mold so the water doesn't turn green. The bottles are then placed on the roofs of houses and begin working as a mirror on the roof, refracting light 360 degrees and providing a natural light bulb during the day.
The project then provides the components needed to make simple solar lights for the women and teaches them how to assemble them. The project lends the components to local people, who pay them back once they start earning money from selling the lamps.
Three years ago, the Liter of Light only lit up rooms and houses. Now it plans to light up entire villages, creating public lighting systems that use cheap and sustainable solar energy methods. More than 650,000 of these lights are already in place in about 20 countries.
How much does the program cost?
A classic solar lamp made from a plastic bottle costs about $3. You can also adapt a kerosene lamp to be equipped with a solar light for about $5. Street lamps cost about $25 to $30. The most powerful lamps sell for $60. Compared to other solar-powered lights, which cost about $1,000, these are very affordable.
