THE RIGHT WAY TO SPREAD SOLAR TECHNOLOGY
Updated August 15th, 2025
By Morgan Pierce
An article in one of the Sunday papers raised my blood pressure. According to reporting by The Guardian and Brazil’s O Globo, US-based missionaries are using handheld solar powered devices to preach to uncontacted indigenous tribes in a remote valley on the Peruvian border.
It’s not the proselytising that has my blood boiling, it’s the fact that the tribes, which live their lives in stone-aged conditions, are highly vulnerable to infectious disease. So much so that since 1987 it has actually been a crime to initiate contact with them. The new devices, which pass through multiple hands before reaching the tribespeople, are a dangerous potential source of contamination.
It’s a painful example of how NOT to spread the use of new solar technology becoming available.
Similar technology, when distributed widely and wisely can, however, have dramatic positive impacts.
In our digital age, internet access is the demarcation line between those educated to succeed, and those not equipped to do so. In the developing world, particularly Africa and South Asia, lack of electricity means that only 6% of children have internet access in their homes.
“These children,” one report concludes, “miss out on opportunities to learn from videos, digital tools and data found online.”
A new solar-powered backpack, created by Finnish startup TESPACK and rolled out by the charity PLAN International, may change all that. The backpack is fitted with solar panels that provide up to 300W of power to charge laptops or phones. It comes with projectors and speakers so classes and coursework can be delivered almost anywhere.
Solar Technology Journey
As long ago as 2011, Samsung introduced the first solar-powered laptop – especially built and designed to meet the needs of the African market. A solar panel integrated into the laptop’s lid could be charged in two hours of sunlight, providing 14-hours of working life. Using an USB port, the laptop could also be used to charge phones and other small electronic devices.
“Plug and play” solar devices are even being used to provide lighting and electricity to rural medical clinics across sub-Saharan Africa thanks to SolarAid. The international development charity works alongside communities to combat poverty and climate change in some of the most hard to reach parts of the globe. (You can donate to their work by clicking on the link, here.)
Look at solar technology closer to home, portable solar devices are finally coming into their own, making it possible to efficiently charge phones, laptops, cameras and other equipment. Solar powered hearing aids are becoming more widely available, as are other portable, wearable solar-powered medical devices.
At SolarSmart, we’re keen to see solar live up to its potential for generating clean, low-cost energy. Today, solar accounts for only 5.4% of electricity generated globally. Each and every solar innovation and life-changing solar technology mentioned here has the capacity to edge that number up.
Solar technology has become cheaper, more versatile and more durable so that the solar innovations I’ve described have become workable solutions with life-changing results.
Just as important, those same technological advances have made the installation of solar in homes and businesses the fastest growing source of renewable energy around the world. Here in Ireland, government has embraced that change by offering an array of cost-saving grants to cut the cost of installing solar.
Look around at all the answers to once intractable problems that portable solar tech is now providing. By and large, it’s heartening “tech for good”. If that inspires you to look for the right way to live more sustainably yourself, installing solar is the most revolutionary step you can take.
Why Choose Solar In Ireland?
Investing in a solar panel systems in Ireland can bring many benefits, including reduced energy bills, increased energy independence, and a reduced carbon footprint. If you are interested in installing a solar panel system in Ireland, it is also worth exploring the different grant options and green business loans available and seeking professional advice from one of our solar energy advisors.
Feel free to contact us for more information, we’re here to help.
