Off The Grid Energy for Future of Health

The development of human scale technologies that can to tap in to and harness alternative sources of energy is yielding new solutions for powering peoples lives off the grid. Without requiring a pricey infrastructure to deliver energy, these innovations address the necessity for access to basic services, providing a level of autonomy, sustainability and comfort that can be readily deployed in virtually any situation.

What to do

• Energy Commodities – By harnessing energy from existing activities and storing it, communities resell can harvest energy to resell.


• Self-Sustaining Individuals – By generating their own sources of energy, users can alleviate some of the concerns around the reliability of utilities.


• Capturing Energy Exhaust – Innovative design can work to capture energy from existing activities that would otherwise go to waste.


• Reducing Power Load – Self-generated power ensures communication lines remain open regardless of time of day or conditions, providing reliable connections for electronics.

Examples

The Nokia Bicycle Charger Kit can be attached to any bicycle to power up devices from the pedaling motion of the bike’s rider. The electricity generator is powered by the front bicycle wheel as a rider pedals and transfers electricity to a charger attached to the handlebar, which plugs in to a phone. A 10-minute journey at four miles per hour produces around 28 minutes of talk time or 37 hours of standby time.

The BioLite transportable cooking stove is a working prototype that is designed to revolutionize cooking for the 3 billion individuals who cook with wood or other solid fuels. As the fuel burns, a fraction of the thermal energy produced is harvested, converted to electricity, and used to power a tiny fan that aids combustion efficiency. Excess electricity is made obtainable to users for charging tiny electronic devices such as cell rings and LED lights.

The Appropriate Expertise Collaborative, in partnership with engineering students and professors at Los angeles State University, has developed a refrigeration expertise that requires no moving parts and receives its power from solar energy. The Solar Vaccine refrigerator makes use of the heat from the sun like a solar charger to generate condensation within the unit, which in turn creates a cooling effect. The design is simple to maintain, makes use of basic materials and can be assembled in the country or region where it is to be used.

Hope this article will inspire your thinking and lead to services, applications and technologies which will allow for more available, quality healthcare.