Solar Power and Regenerative Agriculture in Burma

It’s probably Spring where you, but here in Myanmar, we’re just going into Hot season (April/May). This year is a funny one – cooler temperatures than in recent years, but with early rains and violent winds – climate change is alive and well in Pyin Oo Lwin!

I’ve been back here for nearly four months and we have had a packed schedule – Solar PV trainings in Kandaw, Tachileik and Pyin Oo Lwin – experimenting with Hot Composting and Biochar – studying up on Vermiculture – negociating a land purchase for the Renewable Energy Training Center, attending a Mini-grid conference in Nay Pyi Daw etc etc. It’s been a busy time, but we are proud of our achievements and hopeful for the future prospects for Solar Roots in Myanmar.

The land we are purchasing will be paid for entirely from my own funds – no Solar Roots money is involved. Another development is that we have registered our own company, called Sun, Soil and Water Co Ltd. We hope that we can sell products and services on the local market, generating profits that will go to support the work of Solar Roots.

You can perhaps discern a slight change of direction for Solar Roots – towards an emphasis on agriculture and soil and towards in-country fundraising. That doesn’t mean that we will abandon our core Renewable Energy focus on Solar PV and Stoves – we will simply expand our fields of activity to include new areas that our course participants are asking for. It will be a few years before our in-country funding scheme will bear fruit and we are hoping that you will continue to support us during this period.

There is an exciting funding opportunity from GlobalGiving going on right now - 60% matching funds for donations until May 25^th. This is only available to Renewable Energy projects and the selected projects are few in number. Solar Roots was lucky enough to be selected. We hope that you find our projects worthwhile and that you will take this opportunity to make a donation, and have it matched 60% by GlobalGiving.

Here’s the link: https://www.globalgiving.org/leaderboards/renewable-energy-match-2017/

Thank you,

Bruce Gardiner