First of Two Parts
Like many in the central Philippines village of Tabon, Analyn Fedelis makes a living fishing at night. That’s when many fish come closer to the surface and are easier to catch.
Bright lamps help draw them toward the boat. For years, though, blackouts made the after-dark sojourn a challenge.
“There’s not a day that goes by without a [power outage],” Fedelis says. “We rely on the lights to catch fish. If there is no light, there is no catch, and there will be nothing to sell.”
But for nearly a year, Fedelis has had insurance against blackouts: a small solar panel. The device powers a handful of lamps she keeps on her boat, along with some home electronics. The setup is especially valuable during typhoon season when strong winds and heavy rains often damage the local electric grid.
Fedelis is one of a growing number of women across Southeast Asia turning to small-scale solar systems to power fishing boats, farms and homes.
For thousands of people, the sun has become a welcome alternative to national electric grids, which in many places are patchy and prone to outages.
One of those women is Sumarni, a chili farmer on the Indonesian island of Lombok. With the help of the EmPower program, a joint initiative of the UN Environment Program and UN Women, she recently bought a solar dryer that dries agriculture produce.
Like many Indonesians, she has only one name. The device allows her to grow chilies during Indonesia’s wet season, when damp conditions would normally cause them to wilt and spoil before they go to market.
“When we were introduced to the solar dryers, I got really excited,” says Sumarni. “The results were great. Even with less sunlight, the chillis dried properly and didn’t rot.” (To be continued) UNEP News
