Greenpeace will use solar power to demonstrate the benefits of social entrepreneurship to a group of young South Africans in the build-up to UN climate talks in Durban later this year.
The SunPower Foundation, working in association with Greenpeace Africa, will provide high-efficiency Sunpower solar panels to be used during a two-week Solar Training course offered to 30 of Durban’s local youth.
The course will teach participants about the benefits of solar energy and other renewable technologies, culminating with the installation of solar power systems on two mobile solar showcase units. These units will feature at the 17th session of the Conference of Parties (COP 17) at the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNGCCC) in Durban, from November 28, to December 9 this year.
Each unit will contain solar-powered multi-media devices, such as televisions and laptops, and staff will use their new knowledge of solar PV to explain its advantages to conference attendees.
"With this donation, the SunPower Foundation remains true to its mission – to empower the world’s next generation of solar leaders," said Doug Richards, SunPower Foundation chairman. “We hope that the Greenpeace Solar Training course will inspire local youth to explore solar technology and create renewable solutions for energy needs in this part of the world and beyond."
SunPower, a U.S solar company, is active in Africa, providing capital for several off-grid health clinics in remote villages. The SunPower Foundation has also pledged to install a rooftop solar power system on the Greenpeace Africa headquarters building in Johannesburg.
Last year the UN’s COP16, held in Cancun, Mexico, failed to extend the Kyoto Protocol beyond the 2012 deadline, with several wealthy industrialised nations instead opting for non-binding carbon emission targets. COP17 will again seek to advance the implementation of the Convention and the Kyoto Protocol, as well as the Bali Action Plan, and the Cancun Agreements, reached at COP 16 last December.
