Luci Solar Lamp: The Trip - Day Two

The following day I prepared to give a presentation to a large group of fishmen during their lunch break.

Shop set up outside the shore for Pamban fishing memorabilia 

Preparing for the presentation 

Crowd of fisherman after the presentation

Luci Solar Lamp: The Trip - Day One

I arrived at Rameshwaram in the early hours of Christmas day. I brought 20 Luci lamps with me to test out in the surrounding fishing villages. Since no schools or organizations were meeting that day, our first presentation was given to a small group of women in a widow-support group.

Meeting with the women's group

Following the presentation, one of the widows offered to test out the light for a month in her house. We visited her house/shack near the sea and met her family. They graciously accepted us into their home and served us a meal.

 Speaking with a local widow in her house

Later that night we presented about Luci to a local catholic school that was having Christmas mass. We donated two of the lamps to the school after the mass.

Presenting about the lamp 

Passing around the cooker

Preparation for Solar Lights Trip

I've decided to bring solar lamps to Rameshwaram during my trip to India this December. Our plans to buy the solar lamps from a local Indian distributor fell through at the last moment. Unfortunately they could not provide the quantity of lamps that we wanted to buy from them, so I decided to go a different route and order and ship them there myself.

The lamps I choose are called Luci Solar Lanterns, manufactured by the New York City-based social entrepreneurship firm, MPowerD. I've placed an order for 5 of them to test out, and if they are durable and reliable enough I'll place the full order.