Keeling Curve

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Project Summary / Description:

Solar Sister is the world‚ first scalable, women led renewable energy distribution model delivering reliable clean energy solutions to the most energy poor and vulnerable communities. We empower rural women with clean energy livelihoods, opening a door to greater energy security, financial savings, health, education and climate resilience. We serve the hardest to reach areas through a complete eco-system of leading technology manufacturers, capacity development of local green workforce, and a chain of grassroots entrepreneurs who deliver world class solar and clean cooking solutions. Our vision is light, hope, and opportunity for everyone, everywhere.

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Best Estimate of GHG Avoidance/Reduction of This Project (Tonnes CO2 Equivalent/Year):

Impact on Underrepresented Groups:

Economic Inclusion & Diversity: Solar Sister provides economic opportunity to women who otherwise have few alternatives for earning cash income in a way that fits into their lives. Independent research by the International Center for Research on Women, Santa Clara University and MIT shows that women improve not only their household income, independence, and confidence, but also the health, education and wellbeing of their families. From trainings and ongoing mentoring, entrepreneurs gain important skills and become role models and change-agents in their communities. In our 2018 year-end survey, 98% Solar Sister‚ report that someone views that as a role model. The women with whom we work are impressive and with Solar Sister‚ opportunity and support, they do amazing things to build a bright future. This is a scalable and reliable model to build resilient local clean energy markets which benefit innovators, manufacturers, local economies and the environment.

Gender Diversity: Solar Sister is a pioneer women led, women driven innovator. We believe that women are a key part of the solution to the clean energy access challenge. This is why we invest in women‚ enterprise in off-grid communities. We see the opportunity to empower women and to reach people who aren‚ t reached by business-as-usual energy models. Centering local women in a rapidly growing clean energy sector is essential to eradicating poverty and achieving sustainable solutions to climate change and a host of development issues. And decentralized renewable energy is one of the quickest ways to ensure sustainable access for all.
Local women are enterprising, creative, hardworking, and committed to improving the wellbeing of their families and communities. Like Nanbet, a formidable young single mother raising five children. She‚ a farmer and a clean energy entrepreneur in Nigeria, selling solar lights and clean stoves in her community and using the profits to pay for fertilizers for her farm and to send her grandchildren to school. This is the kind of generational change that clean power can make.

Solar Sister Raheli Philipo from Longido, Tanzania, is a Maasai herder, a mother, grandmother and since 2017 a clean energy entrepreneur. At first she was worried about how to sell this new technology. We worried - will we be able to sell it? So the education and training is important, because we didn't know about solar. Then we understood that we women can change things in the boma [Maasai family homes]. After receiving training from Solar Sister on solar technology, business skills and marketing, Raheli and her fellow Maasai entrepreneurs realised they could run successful businesses and bring in extra income for small household needs. Before, women were sitting waiting for 500 shillings from their husband to go buy a little salt. But now I take care of the house myself. I don‚ t have to ask for money, I don‚ t have to wait on him. And if he has money, he goes to buy things to entertain himself. Really, the mother is the house.

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