May 03 2022
As part of the mobile minigrid project in Kenya, we have been working with Chemolex and Quantum Conversions in Nairobi, on designing a trailer with 10kW of quickly deployable solar power. So what does that look like? Well 10kW of solar power is BIG! Each 430W panel is over 2mx1m (almost the size of the …
Permanent link to this article: https://e4sv.org/prototyping-unfolding-solar/
Mar 01 2022
Smart Villages Research Group and Chemolex surveyed more than 11 remote communities in Central and Western Kenya to find a suitable location for trialling of a mobile minigrid system. This report outlines their key research findings. The Maasai Mara communities around Narok proved most promising, as these were the only ones yet to have grid …
Permanent link to this article: https://e4sv.org/mobile-minigrids-community-site-survey-report/
Mar 01 2022
At Smart Villages Research Group, we truly believe in the importance of a community-led approach. We always start by asking the community to tell us about the challenges they’re facing, through focus groups and service value tests. This helps us ensure that any technology or system we develop will definitely provide value to the community, …
Permanent link to this article: https://e4sv.org/challenging-assumptions-through-community-engagement/
Nov 15 2021
We’re excited to reveal this showcase video for Ormoti Business Hub in Northern Tanzania, created by our summer intern, Iona Smith. This pilot project was carried out in partnership with local NGO, OMASI, as part of a wider integrated community energy project. The solar-powered site powers the local borehole for fresh water, fridges for cold …
Permanent link to this article: https://e4sv.org/ormoti-business-hub-showcase-video/
Sep 13 2021
Through our work with Smart Villages Research Group, we often come across issues in the communities that are outside the scope of our project funding to be able to address, but which nevertheless are strong priorities for us, our partners, and the communities. We use Global Giving to fundraise for these projects, and currently have …
Permanent link to this article: https://e4sv.org/donate-this-week-for-50-match-funding/
Sep 08 2021
As part of our project work, we always come across other small issues in the communities in which we are working that are outside the scope of project funding to be able to address, but which nevertheless are priorities for us, our partners, and the communities. In these cases, often even only a very small …
Permanent link to this article: https://e4sv.org/fundraising-with-donorsee/
Jun 28 2021
Exciting news – after an the international travel problems with COVID, our international consortium of partners was finally able to test the new COMET system (Community Energy Toolkit – formerly known as the Minigrid Game) in our target communities in Somaliland – Lughaya, Bali Dhiig and Qool Caday. We will post an update later about …
Permanent link to this article: https://e4sv.org/testing-comet-on-the-ground-in-somaliland/
Jun 20 2021
We’ve created a short booklet with photos and facts about each of our main projects, covering projects with both SVRG and our sister company, STI4D. Each project is only a few pages, with bitesize information and lots of fun infographics. Take a look to learn more!
Permanent link to this article: https://e4sv.org/project-summary-booklet/
May 15 2021
… in the context of the Service Value Test (SVT), a key tool in the Smart Villages approach which engages community members to uncover their needs and aspirations for the future development of their village. It’s an important early step when we start working with a new community, and the quantitative and qualitative data about …
Permanent link to this article: https://e4sv.org/electricity-is-not-a-service/
May 12 2021
On the difficulties of transporting solar equipment to remote places Working at Smart Villages, we are very fortunate to work in some incredible locations. One of the most stunning is Kasese district in western Uganda. Located exactly along the equator, dominated by two national parks, and nestling in amongst the breath-taking Rwenzori mountains, the district …
Permanent link to this article: https://e4sv.org/who-ate-all-the-donkeys/
May 03 2021
Kiruru sub-village is a small community in the Simanjiro District of Northern Tanzania, and the second of the chosen sites for our SICENT project. Roughly 10km via (very bad) mud road from Terat, the local centre (where our partner organisation OMASI is based), Kiruru is actually administratively part of Oiborkishu village, 7km to the north, …
Permanent link to this article: https://e4sv.org/kiruru-maasai-business-incubation-hub/
Apr 03 2021
The Service Value Test (SVT for short) is a key tool in the Smart Villages approach that we like to use as early as possible in our conversations with communities we are looking to work with. We find it really helpful for the following reasons: It gets us quantitative preference data from community members telling …
Permanent link to this article: https://e4sv.org/the-service-value-test-what-and-why/
Mar 11 2021
It’s a long journey from a tiny bean growing in the mountains of Uganda to your first morning cup of coffee in the UK, nearly 7000km away. To learn more about this journey, some SVRG members visited a coffee processing facility funded by the Lutheran World Group near Kasese, Uganda in November, 2020. This facility …
Permanent link to this article: https://e4sv.org/making-coffee/
Mar 04 2021
As we remember our friend, Martin Saning’o Kariongi, who passed away this week from coronavirus, we wanted to collect together some of the material that we, and others, have on the internet featuring Martin talking about his work.
Permanent link to this article: https://e4sv.org/martin-kariongi-in-his-own-words/
Mar 03 2021
While looking through my notes this week hunting some site data for a community in Tanzania that we are working in jointly with our partners OMASI, I found – on the very first pages of my notebook – the notes from our first project meeting, where Martin gave us a little glimpse of his life …
Permanent link to this article: https://e4sv.org/martin-saningo-kariongi-a-life-in-brief/
Mar 02 2021
People do not decide to become extraordinary. They decide to accomplish extraordinary things. Sir Edmund Hillary It is with great sadness that we have to share the news that Martin Kariongi, leader of our Tanzanian partner organisation OMASI, but more particularly our friend and colleague from Terrat, passed away in the morning of 1st March …
Permanent link to this article: https://e4sv.org/martin-kariongi-director-general-of-omasi/
Jan 30 2021
As part of our project with Clear Sky Power and Energy Action Partners in Somaliland, we ran Service Value Tests (more here) in the three focus communities for the project. The aim was to help us get to know them a bit better, understand their needs and priorities, and so design the COMET toolkit to …
Permanent link to this article: https://e4sv.org/service-value-tests-in-somaliland/
Jan 20 2021
The SVRG approach is grounded in community engagement and human centred design, to ensure the systems we install bring real, lasting benefit. Unfortunately, due to language barriers, we are unable to run focus groups ourselves, but rely on our in-country partners to assist with translation, or with running the entire group following training. Our translators …
Permanent link to this article: https://e4sv.org/language-and-education-barriers-in-community-engagement/
Dec 10 2020
A video showing some highlights from our most recent trip to Uganda, aiming to give you a flavour of our everyday work out on the field.
Permanent link to this article: https://e4sv.org/nov-dec-2021-trip-video-uganda/
Nov 28 2020
Many of the communities we work with are agricultural, with maize flour contributing to an integral part of their diet. In the rural Maasai Tanzanian communities we work with, villagers often have to travel miles to neighbouring towns to access a diesel milling machine. Once there, they can face long waiting periods for sufficient customers …
Permanent link to this article: https://e4sv.org/a-solar-powered-electric-milling-machine/
