The Playing with Solar project has been an immense undertaking for Project 90 since the start of February, and at the same time it has been an incredible learning opportunity for us. One of our biggest learnings has been being able to better appreciate different people with different perspectives – Playing with Solar has allowed for this by bringing together people from all walks of life.
In this year’s Playing with Solar journey we have been introduced to some incredibly strong women who are doing inspirational work in their communities. There is a common thread which links these women, something that pushes them towards reaching their goals. They all possess a strong vision, coupled with their love for children and their strong sense of community.
The first lady we met was Evelyn Makasi. For the past 13 years she has run Abaphumleleli Home of Safety in Ilitha Park, Khayelitsha. She looks after 37 children from the age of 1 up into their early twenties. We were touched by what she has achieved so far and saw an opportunity to install five solar lightboxes (constructed by our Leadership Club members) to provide lighting to a building separate to the main house. This building was not electrified before we installed the lightboxes, and it is our hope that the older children at the Home will be able to move into this building to create more space and free up beds.
Our second Solar Lightbox installation took place in June at Jabulani Day Care Centre in Westlake. Cynthia and her husband Roland have opened their home and run a day care centre for the past 14 years. They look after 45 children five days a week, providing them with food and a safe learning environment. After chatting with Cynthia we discovered that her electricity bills have been very high. We wanted to provide some relief by helping to reduce the centre’s electricity bill by installing solar lightboxes. We were also particularly grateful to SABC 3’s Express Show for the opportunity to showcase the project and our installation at the Centre (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ashaN7TG78).
The third and final final installation will take place at Little Angels Educare overlooking the harbour in Hout Bay. Liezl Mathews has run the centre for the past six years and has worked hard to make it what it is today. She has big plans to grow the centre and is an extremely resourceful woman. We will be installing a solar lightbox (with 4 LED lights) in the toilet facility (a shipping container), which previously had no access to electricity.
This rounds off the Playing with Solar project for 2017 . We look forward to seeing the next iteration of the project and learning more about how we can make a significant change in the lives of others.
