describes the features of the donated solar lanterns and the CSR mission of the makers, THRIVE Solar Energy
(Entertainment-NewsWire.com, April 22, 2015 ) Fremont, California -- Bhutan – In the winter of 2014, Siddarth Sundaram, an 18 year old senior from Cupertino High School, California, donated 1,000 Thrive solar lights to rural elementary schoolchildren in Bhutan.
Sid was inspired to organize the donation because of a childhood visit to Bhutan where he witnessed small schoolchildren walking 3-4 hours along treacherous, cliff-side roads to get to and from school everyday. Sid was told that these Bhutanese schoolchildren do not have access to electricity and only have daylight to study their books. Comparing his life in Silicon Valley with theirs, Sid understood from a very young age that his fate would be starkly different.
Bhutan is a landlocked country nestled in the Himalayas in between the political powerhouses of India and China. It is just about the size of Switzerland with a population of almost 754,000 people, two-thirds of whom live in the rural and mountainous parts of the country.
The idea of raising money for a cause came into fruition when Sid and his father got into running marathons. They started with an organization called Team in Training, which helps endurance sports athletes link to a charity that supports The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. As a sophomore in high school, Sid ran 26.2 miles with his father, raising over US$2000.
The experience with Team in Training taught Sid all about fundraising. And the knowledge came just in time for a family friend who had become paralyzed and was hence in a need of a wheelchair. So again, Sid and his father ran to fundraise to purchase the wheelchair – this time in a half-marathon.
And just as running for exercise becomes a habit for serious runners, for Sid, fundraising for charity became a habit. He raised US$800 in one week for a book donation project for a community library in South India. By this time, Sid felt comfortable approaching businesses for sponsorships, like his local Yogurtland, and he felt more at ease initiating collaborations with NGOs, like yrgcare.org and tarayanafoundation.org.
In his latest endeavor, Sid was planning to do the Bhutan International Marathon – that is until his knees gave out and the doctor ordered him not to run long distances anymore. Having already successfully raised some funds for the anticipated race – Sid decided to use the money to donate solar lanterns to the students who lived in those Bhutanese mountain villages he once passed through.
He reached out to a couple of San Francisco Bay Area companies that manufacture solar lanterns, and a Fremont-based one called Thrive Solar Energy responded to his call with open arms. THRIVE is a social enterprise with a mission to alleviate the energy poverty of 2.3 billion people around the world who are off the grid, like the Bhutanese children Sid encountered.
With the THRIVE partnership, Sid was able to buy a bulk of portable solar lanterns at a super discounted rate. He then utilized family connections who were on-the-ground in Bhutan to help facilitate the delivery of the solar lanterns from THRIVE's factory in India. By winter 2014, the NGO, Tarayana Foundation, received the lanterns and distributed them to the happy elementary schoolchildren.
Reflecting on what was achieved, Sid said, "We are very fortunate to have so many opportunities here in the Silicon Valley, I'm just trying to level the playing field a wee bit for those less fortunate."
Cosas AutoSuficientes, LLC (CAS) is one of the few U.S. based retailers selling products made originally for the developing world. In Spanish, it means "self-sufficiency". Cosas AutoSuficientes is an online retailer based out of Fremont, California – the Silicon Valley headquarters for many clean-energy companies. The founder was a Peace Corps Volunteer who understands the conditions people in the developing world face. CAS sells its products using the Amazon online platform.
