Non-Profit Collective SunBox Bringing Light to Gaza Amid Energy Crisis
A non-profit collective of young social entrepreneurs, activists and engineers working on the ground in Gaza to bring solar energy and light to its embattled people has launched a funding campaign to help hundreds more families gain access to vital electricity supplies.
SunBox is a solar energy system designed to provide families in Gaza with almost all of their energy needs. It is 10 times more affordable than any current competitor and has been designed by a group living in Gaza of Palestinian heritage, making it uniquely well equipped to serve the needs of the thousands of people currently struggling to access basic services such as electricity, communications and cooling.
The ongoing energy crisis in the area has devastated many of the most critical internal services of the region, with health care facilities, education, water, sanitation and agriculture all severely impacted. At the same time, multiple sectors of the economy have ground to a screeching halt, leaving many residents of the Gaza Strip without access to even the most basic services and amenities.
SunBox supports and invests in local entrepreneurship and Gazan efforts to get the region back on its feet, but the effort requires the help of those around the world who sympathize with the current plight of the Gazan people. SunBox recognizes that without direct, on-the-ground action from local activists and entrepreneurs, Gaza is at the mercy of extreme poverty – with nearly 60-percent of Gaza already living below the poverty line.
SunBox is working to provide the region with affordable, robust solar energy technology that will provide families with almost all their energy needs. The cost efficiency of the SunBox system has undergone evaluation by Stanford engineers and as it is sold in parts, improves affordability for all the people of Gaza. The team behind SunBox includes recognized MIT Innovators and former recipients of the prize of the MIT Enterprise Forum.
SunBox’s Launch Good campaign empowers socially-minded people to throw their support behind the project and help deliver energy to keep Gaza’s essential infrastructure running.
The Launch Good project is targeting $50,000 to provide 500 families with discounted solar energy systems. Raising $100,000 would allow the charity to help more than 1,250 families receive vital solar energy equipment.
Majd Mashhrawi, CEO of SunBox said, “It’s clear that Gaza is in a state of national emergency right now. All the most basic services people take for granted are all but gone, and the economy of the region cannot survive without power and a stabilised outlook. Our aim is to help as many families in Gaza access renewable, affordable energy – but we need backers to help us achieve our aims.
“Any sum will help real people with real problems. It’s vital that the people of Gaza know that the outside world does care about what’s happening to them. We can make a real difference with our solar energy programme, and so can backers with each donation made.”
To find out more and to support the SunBox campaign, visit https://www.launchgood.com/project/bringing_light_to_gaza_1#!/