RETHINKING EDUCATION: THE SOLAR INITIATIVE

LAUREN REMEDIOS

SHWETA RAO

BAREFOOT COLLEGE

TILONIA- VIA MADANGANJ

DISTRICT AJMER

RAJASTHAN-305816

INDIA

Phone Number: +91 (0)1463 288210 or +91 (0)1463 288351

Fax: +91 (0)1463 288206

E-mail: contact@barefootcollege.org

Website: www.barefootcollege.org

Date: 17-11-2013

DECLARATION

I declare that the paper titled “Rethinking Education: Solar Initiative” submitted by me

for the workshop organized by the International Center for Human Development

(IC4HD), New Delhi titled “CELEBRATING SEWA: TOWARDS HUMAN

DEVELOPMENT THROUGH INSTITUTIONAL INNOVATION IN WOMEN’S

LIVELIHOOD SECURITY” is my own work.

Further, I acknowledge that IC4HD has the right to reproduce, distribute and publish the

above mentioned paper in any form including derivative works (abstracts, policy briefs,

case studies, articles, and translations)

BAREFOOT COLLEGE (SWRC), TILONIA, RAJASTHAN

LAUREN REMEDIOS SHWETA RAO

ABSTRACT

This paper explains the pioneering work of a Non Profit Organization, Barefoot College

located in Tilonia, Rajasthan, which has been addressing rural problems in the areas of

water, solar electrification, education, communication, women empowerment and

livelihood for nearly four decades. The organization was started in 1972 by Director

Sanjit ‘Bunker’ Roy and is a community based model which is owned, managed and run

by the poor. It challenges the formal education system and paper qualified degrees by

training rural men and women with very little or no schooling experiences. One such

revolutionary programme is the Barefoot Solar Engineering that trains mothers and

grandmothers from India and other least developing countries in solar electrification. This

six month training programme takes place on Barefoot Campus in Tilonia and gives

hands on training to the women in making lamps, assembling electronic circuits and

learning how to repair and maintain the solar units. After six months when the trained

Barefoot Solar Engineers return, they bring home light by solar electrifying every

household in their community. Being able to provide electricity to their community does

not only give recognition and respect to a Barefoot Solar Engineer but also empowers her

and gives her a source of income to support family and educate her children.

Introduction

Barefoot History

In 1967, founder Sanjit “Bunker” Roy, found himself in rural Tilonia, Rajasthan working

as an unskilled labourer after receiving an “elitist and snobbish” education. He lived and

worked in villages of Rajasthan for five years digging and blasting wells. This experience

changed the way Bunker viewed the formal education system and paper-qualified

degrees. To him, certified professionals were “paper experts without any practical

experience.” He went through an “unlearning” phase where he realized there exists

traditional knowledge within the rural communities, which no formal education system

valued.

In 1972, Meghraj, a rural farmer from Tilonia, and Bunker, a fresh city graduate

formed a partnership and the concept of Barefoot College was born. The organization

was registered as the Social Work and Research Center (SWRC) and began their

operations to address the need for water in Rajasthan. They slowly started exploring other

areas such as health, education, and handicraft and how they could empower the rural

women.

In the early 1970’s, the Barefoot team comprised of geologists, geo physicists,

cartographers, economists, doctors, and social workers. However, by the early 1980’s, the

urban crowd began retreating, and this changed the workers’ dynamic of SWRC. This

was the first lesson in sustainability by shifting the leadership and responsibility of

SWRC from urban specialists to local leaders. This shift changed the thinking within the

organization “as local people started becoming a part of the collective decision-making

process. The college recognized that its dependence on urban expertise and paper

credentials did damage the mindset of the rural poor, in effect preventing them from

coming out of poverty on their own.”

By handing over the leadership to the rural poor and local community, made

SWRC a success story. This community-driven approach relies on rural wisdom and

finding simple local solutions to tackle community problems.

Nature of work

Barefoot College reflects the ideals of Mahatma Gandhi, such as austerity,

equality, and sustainability. The organizational setup of Barefoot is based on a bottom-up

approach, wherein all operations are community owned and community managed. It is a

place that is built and managed by the poor and for the poor. The basic premise of

Barefoot is to work, teach, learn, and unlearn with the intention of giving back to one’s

own community. The ‘College’ aspect of Barefoot seeks to provide practical training and

learning by doing process.

Based on this philosophy, rural barefoot professionals work in social, economic,

environmental, and political set-ups in their respective communities. Barefoot provides

solutions in the following areas:

1. Water

2. Solar

3. Education

4. Livelihood

5. Communication

6. Activism

Barefoot started its work around water. In arid Rajasthan, water is a scarce

resource, and it is affected not only by the environment, but also by social practices.

Previously, wells were divided along caste lines. Lower caste dalits were strictly not

allowed to fetch water from upper caste wells. Barefoot College had to work against such

feudalistic practices and mindsets of people to ensure drinking water to all, irrespective of

the caste bias.

Installation of hand-pumps and training of hand-pump engineers were the first

steps taken to providing access to drinking water. The second step was to collect water

through rooftop rainwater harvesting. This system of collecting water was not a new

innovation that the College pioneered. It used the age-old practice of harvesting rainwater

for drinking and sanitation for rural communities. The only intervention done by Barefoot

was to make this practice widespread and train Barefoot Water Mistris (engineers). Every

night school run by Barefoot College has a rainwater underground tank, thereby creating

a steady supply of water to school children and enabling them to rely less on external

sources of water. Apart from rainwater harvesting, Barefoot has provided solutions in

dams, desalination plant, and water mapping and testing.

The second area of barefoot solutions is providing renewable energy to

communities. Solar began in 1986 with a mission of electrifying remote communities,

which had no access to grid or government electricity. This Solar intiative prides itself on

being sustainable. It started by training semi-literate and unschooled men and women

from India to become Barefoot Solar Engineers (BSE). Currently, Barefoot trains only

semi-literate and unschooled women from India and around the world to become BSEs.

This model of training and education completely challenges the assumptions of formal

education.

The informal style of education that Barefoot promotes relies on striking a

balance between education and literacy. They believe that literacy is what a child

acquires in school; however, education is what they gain from family, community,

environment, and personal experiences.

The night schools are another area of informal education. Children who are

obligated to work during the day attend these night schools. This classroom is designed

on a democratic model that allows both teacher and student to have a voice in curriculum

design and teaching methods. Additionally, Barefoot runs a day school, balwadis, bridge

courses, and rural crèches. Community-selected rural men, women, and youth who are

called Barefoot Teachers operate this education initiative.

Apart from training and providing work as Barefoot professionals, the

organization promotes livelihood opportunities in the areas of handicrafts, health care,

and sanitary napkin making. The employment created through these programs provides

rural men and women with sustainable jobs that values traditional skills and provides

access to markets. The handicraft section keeps traditional arts, such as weaving,

stitching, embroidering, welding, pottery, carpentry, tanning, and toy making, alive to be

passed on to the next generation.

Health is one of the oldest areas in which, Barefoot has trained health workers,

midwives, pathologists, dentists, and acupuncturists with little or no education

background. These Barefoot Healers promote health awareness on issues such as

hygiene, food and nutrition, immunization, childcare, family planning, etc. One of the

biggest areas in health is providing sanitary napkins to young girls and women. This

initiative enables girls to go to school and solves the issues of sanitation and hygiene

among women.

All the above-mentioned Barefoot initiatives are promoted through traditional

communication to spread awareness and mobilize action. Traditional methods such as

puppetry, street theater, and music have proved to be powerful tools for changing

mindsets, conservative attitudes, and behavior. The communication team questions

antiquated ideas of child marriage, bride burning, caste system, women’s rights, labour

wages, and right to information. Apart from this, print publications and community radio

are additional tools for reaching out to people.

The philosophy of Barefoot College is to ignite social change through democratic

processes and dialogue. The College tackles social, political, and economic issues, which

is often met with struggle and protest. However, through constant conversation and

involvement among the rural and urban populations, Barefoot has managed to break the

caste and gender barriers and allow for open dialogue.

Scope of work

In India and around the world, Barefoot works in various communities, providing

sustainable solutions. The main target audience is women and children.

Water impact

Total number of schools and communities with access to drinking water: 1521

Liters of drinking water available through rainwater harvesting: 99,000,000

Number of rural water engineers employed: 400

Number of villages with access to rain water harvesting: 909

The map below shows the countries that use barefoot water solutions. These countries

include India, Afghanistan, Ethiopia, Mauritania, and Guinea.

Solar Impact

Number of solar electrified villages: 1081

Number of women BSE: 859

Number of countries with barefoot solar engineers: 64

The map below shows the countries Barefoot impacts in Africa and Asia and the number

represents the number of Barefoot Solar Engineers. The maps shows: India, Bhutan,

Afghanistan, Jordan, Ethiopia, Sudan, Tanzania, South Sudan, Rwanda, Malawi,

Zimbabwe, Zambia, Zanzibar, Mozambique, Namibia, Democratic Republic of Congo,

Chad, Niger, Cameroon, Benin, Togo, Mali, Mauritania, Liberia, Burundi, Djibouti,

Senegal, Sierra Leone, Guinea Bissau, Ghana, Burkina Faso, and South Africa, Solomon

Island, Vanuatu, Nauru, Fiji, Tonga, Samoa, Kiribati, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Panama,

Colombia, Haiti, Peru, Bolivia, Haiti, Chile,

Figure 1

Education impact

Total number of children in night schools since 1975: 75,000

Total number of teachers in government schools: 14,000

Number of villages with night schools: 700

Number of Barefoot teachers: 4,500

Livelihood impact

Number of Barefoot artisans: 5,000

Total sales for the last 12 years: 1 million dollars

The chart below shows the various fields Barefoot Professionals who are employed in:

Figure 2

Sources of funds

Barefoot receives funds from national and international funding agencies, which

include government and non-government sectors. Below is a brief list of the main

funders:

Ministry of External Affairs: Funding provided for international solar training

Ministry of New and Renewable Energy: Funding provided for Indian solar

training

Central Social Welfare Board: Funding provided for crèche

34

32

11

8 6 3

Percentage of livelihood created

Education

Drinking water

Entrepreneurs

Women empowerment

Rainwater Harvesting

Media and Communication

Skoll Foundation; UN Women, UNDP: One United National; ENEL: Green

Power; Barr Foundation; Erol Foundation; Bank of America: Funding for solar

equipment and training and rain water harvesting

Charity Aid Foundation: Funding for night schools

The Dalai Lama Trust: General donations

Various awards

Context of the Work

Every year more than 60 semi-literate/unschooled mothers or grandmothers from

India and 80 semi-literate/unschooled mothers or grandmothers from other least

developed countries come to Tilonia, Rajasthan, India and immerse themselves in a 6-

month solar engineering training program. Currently, there are 859 trained women solar

engineers, and 38,600 solar electrified houses in 1,081 villages in 64 different countries.

In addition to solar electrification, the women engineers also provide energy solutions to

hot water, solar cookers, and fresh drinking water through solar powered desalination.

The impact of this solar training and electrification is manifold contributing to poverty

alleviation, women’s empowerment, and environmental protection.

Constraints

In rural Rajasthan, as with most places in India, the ‘purdah’ system is ubiquitous.

The ‘purdah’ system is an antiquated practice in which women cover their face and head.

This way of living is restrictive both literally and metaphorically. Women are married at

a young age and are responsible for family and household and have limited opportunities

in the work sphere. Barefoot shift to train women instead of men to be solar engineers

gave these women a chance to step out of their purdah and enter into the world where

they could avail opportunities and empower themselves. Women who never got a chance

to get out of their homes, are now earning a living, and contributing to their family’s

income along with their male counterpart. They are confident and bold enough to talk to

strangers, and express themselves. They even have dreams and aspirations for their

children because now they have the confidence and the money. Additionally, the ‘purdah’

system restricts girls from getting an education. Women were expected not to continue

schools after a certain age and were redirected to household responsibilities.

Innovation and Action

Barefoot College believes that formal qualifications are not required to bring

about a change in their communities. For this reason, Barefoot has initiated the Solar

Engineering Program, wherein semi-literate to unschooled women train to become solar

engineers.

The College has demystified solar technology and is decentralizing its application

by making it available to poor and neglected communities. As part of the decentralization

process the college essentially trains a few members of the community to be barefoot

women solar Engineers who will install, repair and maintain solar lighting units for a

period of five years. Additionally a rural electronic workshop where components and

equipment needed for the repair and maintenance for solar unit will be stored. The

women go to India for six months of training and selection of these women is a

community affair. The methodology applied to rural solar electrification is unique to the

Barefoot College. Only villages that are inaccessible, remote and non-electrified are

considered for solar electrification. The master trainers who train these women are also

men and women from local communities who have attained no formal education but have

been trained at Barefoot College and now train others through their practice and

experience.

Upon returning to their villages, the grandmothers start solar electrifying each

house and bring renewed hope and inspiration to the village. In return for their

installation, maintenance and repair services, the women engineers receive a monthly

salary from the village solar committee.

Figure 3

Master Trainers of the Solar Engineering Programme

The success of the program revolves around the partnerships built between

different agencies (government and non-government) and the communities that have been

solar electrified. Bringing together the strength of different partners such as the Business

Sector, Multi-lateral Organizations, Government Agencies and Private Foundations

enable the solar program to reach the most marginalized and rural communities in

developing countries.

Figure 4

Challenges & Opportunities

The Women's Barefoot Solar Engineering Initiative faces many challenges.

Overcoming entrenched ideas about access to education and knowledge transfer are at the

heart because they permeate all layers in the development process from the women

themselves on the ground who have been told and convinced they are not able to learn

due to low literacy, lack of schooling, gender bias, age bias. The biggest challenge is in

convincing and changing the rural village mindset and all the way to the highest

government mentalities that educating grandmothers in rural areas is not a waste of time

and will have impact.

The larger development community and funding pools must also be challenged

and convinced that a grass roots community based model has the very real possibility of

reaching scale and large impact that it is worth investing in and championing.

The developed world presents challenges in its deep belief that technology should

only be accessed by the paper certified, formally educated elite and not be readily made

accessible to the poorest of the poor.

Opportunities are vast. The empowerment of a single woman who then mobilizes

and catalyses confidence and "belief" within their community leads to viral impact,

interest, hope and change.

The organization is expanding into regional learning centers that will offer not

only the knowledge transfer and de mystification of technology in the rural solar

electrification area, but also other vocational trainings, lead quickly and effectively to

entrepreneurial development and economic mobility for women in the developing world.

6 are currently in work in Africa with one in the Pacific region under discussion and one

in Central America also in planning. This expansion of the Barefoot College "footprint"

will allow the organization to build deeper Public/private sector partnerships that are

necessary if it wants to maximize the efficacy and scale possible. It will allow for wider

understanding and support of the college's work and drive further development debate

and paradigm shift.

The motivation is simple and clear. 1.6 billion people live without light and clean water.

That must change. Of the 875 million illiterate people in the world, 80% are women. That

stops women from becoming the agents of change they are proven to be. That must

change. Get technology into their hands. That is what turns women into "Barefoot

professionals".

Results

Since 2008, the grandmothers have managed to provide electricity to more than

45,000 households, bringing light to more than 450,000 individuals in 1,081 villages.

In addition, communities have seized the opportunity to provide electricity to numerous

public facilities, including schools, hospitals, local administration offices, religious

buildings and community centers.

Box 1: The Solar Engineers of Sholavata, Rajasthan

In rural Rajasthan, where caste discrimination still exists, solar power proves to be a viable option

for a community’s access to electricity. Few kilometers away from a village, Sholavata, we have

the ‘Bagariya’ community that lives in seclusion. This community survives on solar

electrification maintained by two solar engineers

Sangeeta and Jannat.

While Sangeeta comes from a feudalistic upper caste

family called the Rajputs, Jannat belongs to the

conservative Muslim community. Both of these

communities do not prefer their women going out and

seeking employment. They work at the production centre

of Barefoot College located in Sholavata and take care of

repair and maintenance of solar units in the nearby

villages.

“It was very difficult for me to step out of my house and

join the training programme because I come from a

Rajput family wherein the women are supposed to strictly

follow the restrictive purdah system. Luckily my parents

have been associated with the organization from a long

time and hence they encouraged me to come forward. But other people in my family are still not

happy about the fact that I go to work every day. Sometimes you just have to ignore these voices

and carry on with your good work.”

- Sangeeta

“My family opposes my willingness to work. I still do it because it’s my choice and with the

income that I earn, I support my family and children.”- Jannat

Going green!

The villages that have solar electricity have positive environmental effect on the

environment. They considerably reduce air pollution, fire and health hazards which take

place due to burning of firewood or kerosene.

Moreover, communities that had previously relied on using firewood saw

significant reductions in deforestation and land degradation. For example, with the help

of solar energy, annual kerosene consumption in villages across Mozambique fell by

27,375 liters and annual firewood consumption fell by 91,250 metric tons in the same

region. Many communities across Africa and Asia have managed to replace 50-95% of

kerosene lamps with solar powered lighting, and some villages have succeeded in

eliminating kerosene lamps completely.

Socio-Economic Impact

The villages chosen for solar electrification programme are remote and

inaccessible which have no hope of being electrified through power grid. Hence such

communities, when they receive electricity through solar power, enjoy various socio-

economic benefits.

They save significantly over kerosene and battery expenditure. Beneficiaries in

Ghana have been able to register savings of 76% in solar energy expenditures over

kerosene. Apart from this, it also reduces the work load and labour for women who

would otherwise walk miles in search of wood or kerosene. They save a lot of time this

way which can be used for other productive activities.

Having a dependable source of light in households has an economic advantage

attached to it. It makes way for community wide economic activity because the day

doesn’t end with sunset. Women carry out various activities such as handicrafts which

give them additional sources of income. In the case of Ghana, solar energy has been

providing lighting for two food processing plants where women produce butter at night.

In Niger, women engaged in increased honey production; in Rwanda, women increased

craft-making; and in Ethiopia women increased production of handcrafts and “tela,” a

locally brewed beverage.

Education

The communities with solar electricity also experience additional long-term

benefits. The solar lighting systems are provided with mobile charging unit. And a

substantial rise in the usage of mobile phones has been noted in such communities since

they now have a facility to charge their phones on a regular basis. In addition, radio,

television, and other electronic media facilitated more efficient information gathering and

educational activities.

Solar energy has a long term impact on children’s education in particular, since

school going children can now study after dark. Extended daylight hours allow for more

flexible schedules for completing domestic tasks, work and studying. Several

communities, including those in Bhutan and Ghana, installed solar energy kits in school

buildings. Several communities have also implemented adult literacy programs, along

with community television and radios airing audiovisual education programs.

Women Empowerment

One of the strongest and direct impacts of this programme is the change brought

in the social status of the women. They feel more empowered and confident as a Barefoot

Solar Engineer. They take part in the crucial decision making process at both household

and village level. They are respected for their work and the immense amount of courage

they show during the whole training programme while learning the complex technical

skills and going back to serve their communities.

Since all the women from various countries learn the skill together, the exchange

of knowledge takes place at various levels. Psychologically they get prepared to adjust to

the culture and language barrier in a new land. Culturally, they interact with each other

and learn how lifestyle and traditions vary from country to country. Academically, they

learn together and help each other apart from the language barrier to build a unique

understanding and peer to peer relationship. This exposure helps in broadening their

horizons and prepares them for new kind of learning and exchange.

The women therefore, not only learn the skill but also attain confidence to look at

improving their lives with a fresh perspective. This confidence further supports them in

taking leadership roles to train more women in their communities and enlighten more

lives.

Recommendations

The Barefoot model of sustainability, simplicity, traditional values, and rethinking

educations can be and is easily replicable. Fourteen grassroots rural organizations in 14

different states around India use Barefoot solutions in rural development and tackling

community issues. These organizations draw on the experiences and the successes of

Barefoot projects such as solar, education, and livelihood. The 14 organizations work

independently from Barefoot College but come together as a network to collaborate and

cooperate. This network is called SAMPDA and they work to innovate and develop low-

cost methods of empowering the rural communities.

SAMPDA is unique as acting as a channel to exchange experiences and ideas that

is relevant in the areas of livelihood, education, and solar. Barefoot College is a part of

this network and act as a liaison between the different organizations, government

agencies and different funding agencies. Additionally, SAMPDA meet bi-annually to

organize workshops, seminars, and conferences to discuss the successes and future goals

of the network members.

For example, SUTRA is an organization based in Himanchal Pradesh. This

organization follows the Barefoot solutions of night schools. Majority of children from

these schools live in slums and work during the day. Himalaya Vikas Samiti Mission in

Uttarkhand models the activities of rainwater harvesting and solar lighting in various

communities around the state. Agragamee in Odisha uses Barefoot philosophy of training

semi-literate to unschooled women and thereby creating ‘ecopreneurs’ capable of

sustaining their household and the environment.

The Barefoot approach has enabled the expansion of its programs in mobilizing

people to make positive social change in ecologically and culturally diverse settings. The

solutions can also be seen in the Solar initiative at the global perspective. Women from

64 different countries implement and integrate the barefoot solar lighting in their

respective communities. Moreover, the solar initiative prides itself in being sustainable

and developing local capabilities by passing on the gift of knowledge to other women in

their villages and training more solar engineers. The approaches of Barefoot, best

practices, and lessons learnt can be easily replicable and generalized since these activities

and philosophes are participatory, self-reliant, sustainable, and simple.

References

Bunker Roy & Jesse Hartigan (2008). Empowering the Rural Poor to Develop

Themselves: The Barefoot Approach. Spring 2008, Vol. 3, No. 2, Pages 67-93.

Retrieved from http://www.mitpressjournals.org/doi/abs/10.1162/itgg.2008.3.2.67

Barefoot staff member. Barefoot campus interviews.

Internal department reports

Report for the Millennium Development Goals. Developed by Barefoot College Solar

Department.

www.barefootcollege.org