SUNSPOT wins Renewable Transformation Challenge 2019
In 2019, Elsevier and the International Solar Energy Society ISES were pleased to announce SUNSPOT as the winners of the 2019 Renewable Transformation Challenge!
“Team SUNSPOT is honored to be selected as the winner of this year’s Renewable Transformation Challenge,” said Douglas Danley, Team Leader and Co-founder of SUNSPOT. “The combination of innovative micro-financing, efficient consumer-grade electric cooking appliances and low-cost photo-voltaic modules have made it possible to introduce the solar-electric cooking system, which can compete with traditional biomass stoves.”
The scale of the problem that Danley and his team set out to solve is massive. According to the World Bank, three billion people across the world are still using basic biomass fuels (like wood or dung) for cooking1. This has a significant negative impact on the individuals’ health, their environment, and their social and economic potential. Reducing the use of biofuels around the world will mean less deforestation and that time currently used to collect or create fuel, could be better spent on more socially beneficial activities like education and commerce.
Danley explained: “Lowered carbon emissions will mean less pressure on local forests, but most importantly, the elimination of smoke from traditional fires and other quality-of-life improvements for the women and children most directly involved in cooking. We look forward to working with partners around the world to scale this technology and help achieve the RTC goal of moving the world ‘toward an energy system supplied entirely by renewable energy sources.’”
The winning team received their award during the ISES Solar World Congress 2019 Awards Ceremony including a monetary prize of €20,000 EUR and one ISES Gold membership.
About the Renewable Transformation Challenge
The Renewable Transformation Challenge, launched in 2017, aims to honor and showcase outstanding work that actively supports the transformation to a world powered by renewable energy and has potential to widen access to energy, particularly in developing countries. The challenge was open to individuals and organizations in both not-for-profit and commercial sectors worldwide.
In 2019, more than 100 entries were received which were scored in terms of applicability, impact, sustainability and scalability in two stages: first by the Juror Panel, and then by the Elsevier-ISES Awards Committee who selected the final winner from the ten shortlisted candidates.