Solar Lamps for 2600 Students in Sundarbans, India

Dear Kind Supporter,

Since the inception of the Solar Lamps Project in 2011, 1600 individual students have received a solar lamp. Solar lighting has been provided for an entire girls' school hostel with 40 students and sets of twin solar lights have been installed in 8 government high school hostels and a coaching centre benefitting over 400 students. Since April 2012, we have the students who are receiving the solar lamps into the Green Rhinos Program, a transformational youth nature leadership program.

This has been possible with your support. These poor meritorious students would otherwise have not been able to afford the use of these lamps. The solar lamps have benefitted the students and their families in multiple ways.

The solar lamps provide the students with a strong steady source of light by which to study after sundown.  Many students have been able to improve their grades in school as a result of receiving this lamp. Priyanka, a girl student studying in Kishorimohanpur High School says, “I can study without the smoke from a kerosene lamp stinging my eyes and nose.” Hena, a girl student of Debipur Karunamoyee Balika Bidyayatan, says “All my brothers and sisters sit around the lamp to study together. The lamp has made a very big difference in our lives.”

The solar lamp is useful for the entire family. Family members can use it to do housework and it is used as a torch at night if anyone needs to go outside the hut at night. It saves the use of at least 18 liters of kerosene a year resulting in 2% saving in the family’s annual expenditure.The reduction in use of kerosene has helped to reduce carbon emissions benefiting the fragile ecosystem of the Sundarbans, aWorld Heritage site.

The lamp has helped to bring the family together. Parimal, father of a student who has received a solar lamp happily proclaims, “The whole family gathers around the lamp to eat together at night. This is a wonderful program!”

The Solar Lamps Project has been a successful project by ASED. We are closing the project as we are now concentrating on creating the capacities of the young people in the Sundarbans and in other parts of India to protect and improve the environment. This is being done through our   Green Rhinos Program through which we create youth nature leaders. By end of 2015, we will have created 2600 Green Rhinos.

We aim to create 5,000 Green Rhinos in India by 31 December 2016 and 10,000 globally by 31 December 2018. We are fundraising for the Green Rhinos Program through GlobalGiving at  http://www.globalgiving.org/projects/create-5000-youth-nature-leaders-by-december-2016/. It would be wonderful if you could support this program!

With our best wishes and gratitude,

Diti