Orkesumet Village Elders

These serious looking elder leaders of Orkesumet Village are eager to use solar PV for benefiting maternal health care, schools, and community development projects. They need cell phone charging, water system pumping/distribution, school education programs, home lighting systems, radio/TV, and refrigeration. Young people are especially interested in getting the internet and using smart phones! Women entrepreneurs want to grind corn, operate sewing machines, make cheese, and improve craft products.

Photos by Johnny Weiss, Feb. 2017

Passing on Solar Knowledge

Images from the Votech school in Terat, TZ

Photos by Johnny Weiss

More Fun in Terat

Pico microgrids are solarizing neighborhoods (‘bomas)’ throughout East Africa.

Photos by Johnny Weiss

Shopping for technical supplies

Johnny Weiss, Dave Berger and Julie Larson with Tanzanian hosts and SEI alums Lukas, Seela, and friends. Dave Berger, SEI alum (1997), delivers  charitable equipment of one We Share Solar suitcase (blue)…. and a We Care Solar suitcase (yellow) to Tanzanian NGO. The blue suitcase provides solar lights for a rural school, and the yellow suitcase provides lights to a rural health clinic. Great work Dave!

Photos by Johnny Weiss

Tanzanian boma (home) solar system has been working since 1995

Lukas Kariongi, SEI trained Tanzanian solar technician installed this system in 1995 for his Maasai mother-in-law. The original Solarex PV module, APT Smartcharger controller, and several of the lights… have actually worked for 22 years!  The storage battery has been well-maintained, and has only needed to be replaced about every five years.

Lukas Kariongi is the proud solar technician. It was Lukas’s first professional  installation. It was supervised by Master Solar Trainer Mark Hankins, currently the CEO of African Solar Designs in Nairobi, Kenya.

Way to go Lukas, family and Mark! Congratulations on a PV system well-designed, properly installed, and maintained!

Photos by Johnny Weiss