Belize

Transfer of information and technology that supports practical efforts of families and communities to address their basic needs has long been an important aspect of Plenty's work. In southern Belize Plenty is working with Maya and Garifuna people to address health care, environmental, food security, small business development issues. The vast majority of Mayan villages in this area do not have electricity. This past October Thomas Heikkala from Plenty Austin and Ed Eaton from Solar Energy International (SEI) met with representatives of the Toledo Cacao Growers Association (TCGA), the community of Aguacate, Toledo Eco-Tourism Association (TEA), and individuals working in government, business and the non-profit sector to review the possibility of initiating collaborative renewable energy education and demonstration programs.

Several program ideas resulted from this investigation. The TCGA members are interested in establishing a revolving loan fund from which their members could purchase solar panels for lighting and other small home power needs. TCGA and other farming families are interested in setting up solar and/or hydro powered water pumps that would allow them to irrigate fields during dry seasons. The community of Aguacate, which has no electricity, would like help installing solar lighting in a community building, allowing them to have meetings and their children to do home work after dark. The TEA is interested in establishing solar lighting in their thatched roof and cement floor guest houses.

Thomas and ED will be returning to the Toledo District in January 2001. In collaboration with local organizations, they will demonstrate some of the many uses of solar voltaic, including water pumping, lighting and others appropriate to the economic, environmental and social circumstances that exist in southern Belize. They will be evaluating the level of interest that exists for introducing renewable energy systems, and how families and organizations could meet the cost of those systems. It is expected that in follow-up to these education and fact finding activities, Plenty and SEI will help local organizations and agencies plan and secure resources to carry out a multi-year renewable energy development program.

$700-2000 will pay the cost of materials for lighting one home, clinic or small school in a rural Mayan community that has no electricity.

$1500 will pay the cost of sending Thomas Heikkala from Austin to demonstrate small-scale practical applications of solar voltaics to Mayan farmers and agricultural coops. Thomas, Ed Eaton from Solar Electronics International, and local representatives will also review revolving loan systems that could assist families and community-based organizations pay the cost of installing renewable energy systems.

$1500-2000 will pay the cost of materials for one solar voltaic irrigation pump.

For more information about Plenty's renewable energy efforts, please contact Thomas Heikkala.