Renewable energy education in Uganda
The purpose of the project is to offer vocational training in renewable energy to youth and women of Iganga district and the entire Busoga region. The project will offer courses in renewable energy in two areas: 1) Solar energy to include: Photovoltaic (PV) and water heating, 2) Biogas. The courses will be localised to suite needs of the region, and short to last one year with a possibility for student alumni to be guided and helped in setting up micro enterprises after completing the course.
The training will facilitate learners with knowledge on renewable energy, environmental and social sustainability, ICT, and entrepreneurship. To implement this project a team of different organisations with experience in development and education activities internationally namely INUG (Engineers without borders Sweden), Education Finder Sweden (EF) and Volunteers have partnered with local organisations eSeeker Uganda a branch of Education Finder in Uganda and Busoga University (BU).
Read more on the project blog
Solar energy on the rise, offering great opportunities for e-learning
Solar energy seems to be one of the biggest the buzzword for 2010, and the technology is constantly evolving. Portable devices, roofing tiles, and solar heating are just some of the exciting new developments.
BBC reports that portable solar devices are becoming smaller and smaller – and, despite this, even more powerful. The newest solar chargers will be able to harness electricity even on a cloudy day, and they can be plugged straight into the laptop providing part of its power while the computer is used. A portable panel for running laptops and charging the battery at the same time is currently being developed and is planned to launch in 2010.
An increasing number of people are also using solar roofing tiles to provide their homes with solar energy. It is cheap, efficient, and environmentally friendly – and could be a particularly attractive solution for many developing countries. New developments are on their way in this area, too, with an American company working on what they have termed ‘the next generation of panel power’. Using new materials, the tiles will be more effective in increasing the amount of energy that can be harnessed from the sun.
Another interesting development is the possibility of solar heating, which has already been tested in different parts of the world and is currently planned to expand with a number of power plants and transmission grids across North Africa and the Middle East. If all goes as planned, this technology could provide Europe with about 15% of its energy needs by 2050, according to the BBC. However, political and ethical issues need to be discussed and resolved before the project can be initiated.
When it comes to education, solar power and particularly smaller chargers for laptop use, holds great potential to revolutionize learning, not least when it comes to e-learning and for bringing quality education to all parts of the world.
Source: BBC.
Written by Fanny Johansson
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