‘Liter of Light’ Project Uses Recyclable Materials and Solar Energy to Bring Lighting to Brazil’s Most Isolated Communities

The Litro de Luz Project, an initiative that aims to bring electricity through solar energy and recyclable materials, is benefiting several communities

After about 50 years living without electricity, the home of Abilio Lopes, an Indigenous person residing in the São Tomé community, located on the banks of the Rio Negro, received lighting using recyclable materials such as a PET bottle. The Indigenous man is one of 23,000 Brazilians who have already been served by the Litro de Luz project, which aims to use common materials from our daily lives and combine them with solar energy to bring energy to more isolated communities in the country.

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About 2 Million Brazilians Do Not Have Access to Electric Power

As reported by Portal Terra, Abilio Lopes says that his day would end at 7 PM when it became darker. At night, the only light in his house was from the kerosene lamp, which left the house filled with smoke. Lopez asserts that now he can weave fishing nets at night and fish all day. In Brazil, about 2 million people do not have access to electricity, and 6 million do not even have public lighting.

The lack or inadequacy of this essential infrastructure, which for some more remote communities is provided by candle or kerosene lamps, makes work, study, and even basic activities difficult. Not to mention the risk of fire and health problems caused by smoke. The Litro de Luz project is part of a program that started in 2011 in the Philippines, known as global Liter of Light, but was inspired by a technique created by Brazilian mechanic Alfredo Moser back in 2002.

The mechanic was responsible for installing recyclable materials on the roof with water and bleach. Through solar energy, the PET bottle generated lighting equivalent to a 60-watt bulb. The intention was to help people save energy. From the Philippines, the project began to spread to various countries. In total, there are 25 countries, including Brazil.

How Does Solar Energy Generation Work with Recyclable Materials?

The Litro de Luz project created a low-cost lighting system that uses recyclable materials like PET bottles, PVC pipes, and panels to illuminate homes using solar energy.

The PVC poles support the solar panels and lamps, considering that there is no connection to the electrical grid. The solar energy captured by the panel makes a lamp LED installed inside a bottle work. In an outdoor setting, the system works at night and automatically turns off in the morning. Inside, the lamps have an autonomy of 5 hours.

600 LED Lamps Are Built in Médio Juruá

The residents of the communities learn to maintain and replicate the social technology system easily. The largest projects using recyclable materials benefited riverside centers in Médio Juruá, where about 600 PET lamps were installed.

The locality has 565 families, and the project’s volunteers traveled for two hours from the Amazonian capital and another 30 hours by boat to reach there. The community interested in the Litro de Luz project can pre-register by accessing forms with simple information.

About 20 days or less after registration, the social development sector will contact them. It’s worth noting that the execution depends on partner companies to cover basic costs.