The boundless energy that children are born with is something that could easily be channeled for purposes as great as growing and learning. Instead of evaporating into thin air, Empower Playgrounds collects it to provide light in the classrooms and homes of rural African villages. As its tag line reads, "Lighting the world with recess."
Conceived by Ben Markham, a former Vice-President of Engineering at ExxonMobil Research and Engineering, Empower Playgrounds focuses in particular on merry-go-rounds that generate and store electricity when played upon. According to Fast Company, "A healthy 8- to 12-year-old generates about 150 watts of energy per hour." This energy is stored on battery packs and used in portable LED lanterns given to the children to take home and use after dark. Empower Playgrounds is changing lives one light at a time.
Energy-Generating Jungle Gyms
Empower Playgrounds Harnesses the Boundless Energy of Children
Trend Themes
1. Energy-generating Playgrounds - Opportunity to explore innovative ways to harness the energy of children in outdoor play and leverage it to generate electricity and power up communities in remote areas.
2. Sustainable Educational Technology - Exploring ways to integrate technology with education in a sustainable and eco-friendly manner has potential to revolutionize remote learning and improve access to education for marginalized communities.
3. Green Energy for Rural Communities - There is a growing trend in identifying and utilizing renewable energy sources to provide reliable electricity and improve access to basic services for marginalized communities in underdeveloped areas.
Industry Implications
1. Renewable Energy - Opportunity for innovative solutions and collaborations for renewable energy companies, leveraging the use of solar panels, wind turbines, and other green energy sources to provide electricity and bring light to rural communities.
2. Education Technology - Opportunity for education technology companies to integrate sustainable and innovative technology into the classroom, such as Empower Playground's energy-generating technology that can promote learning in and out of school.
3. Social Enterprises - Social enterprises with a mission to make a difference in the lives of people and the environment have an opportunity to develop innovative solutions that integrate education, energy, and play to uplift and empower marginalized communities.