The Lighting a Billion Lives project, run by The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI), has deployed nearly 30,000 solar lanterns in almost 300 rural villages in India. TERI pledged to reduce kerosene dependability and bring solar lighting to one million people at the 2007 Clinton Global Initiative. That was later increased to one billion.
The lanterns are charged at a local charging station – manned by a local entrepreneur – and rented out to residents at a daily rate. Not only does the program benefit those using the lights but also those who are employed at the charging stations.
This video, which we saw on Yahoo! India News, by the Asian Development Bank, who partly funds the project, shows how the program has transformed the lives of a small village in Orissa.
