Gravity Light – A Brilliant Solution for millions of people off the grid
By
Bryan Boyne (g.g.) , Friday, July 24, 2015
In our ongoing search for new ways to contribute to our community, and in particular to benefit those folks who do the difficult and dangerous work of extracting rough diamond from the earth, Whiteflash has come across a fabulous new initiative. Imagine a light that is powered without batteries and without fuel. And we are NOT talking about solar power here. We are talking about an energy source that is always all around us, night and day. Imagine light powered by gravity.
It is not science fiction. It is happening. Check this out.
The
Gravity Light is an ingenious product designed and developed by some amazing people as a means of eliminating the use of the ubiquitous kerosene lamp, and to eliminate the costs, dangers and environmental damage the use of kerosene entails. Some 1.3 billion people on the planet do not have access to electricity or only sporadic access. For most of those people, the improvised kerosene lamp is their solution for indoor lighting. In addition to the toxic fumes, fire hazard, and large release of greenhouse gasses resulting from the use of kerosene, the financial cost associated with the fuel for the very poor can create a cycle of poverty that prevents escape.
This is the problem that the developers of the Gravity Light went about solving. Through ingenuity, hard work, perseverance and the creative use of crowd sourced funding, they developed a device that can light a home without fuel or batteries of any kind. It is powered by the ever-present force of gravity! And they have figured out how to manufacture it for $6 per unit- the price at which mass distribution becomes viable. It is a price that pays for itself within weeks of first use and without any of the dangers or ill effects of kerosene.
Whiteflash is a supporter of the Gravity Light initiative which has tremendous promise for significantly improving the lives of children and families in the diamond mining areas of Africa and all over the globe. Take a few minutes to learn about the development of Gravity Light from Jim Reeves, the technical director of the project. It is quite inspiring!
Whiteflash has leveraged our membership in the Diamond Development Initiative to introduce that organization to the Gravity Light, a connection that may help to spread the product and its benefits to communities of artisanal diamond miners.
As specialists in diamonds of the finest cut quality, Whiteflash has expertise in light performance. It is therefore fitting that we put our support behind another provider of extraordinary light performance!