Country of Residence
Kenya
Age
10
Project title
BrightMinds: Sunlight to Learning
Project Summary: Describe your project in one sentence
BrightMinds is a project where my friends and I want to find out how solar energy can help children in rural areas study with better light by making a simple solar-powered study lamp and exploring ways to make learning easier.
Website URL(s) or social media handles.
Project Category
My project is a brand new / emerging idea
Project Stage
Idea (We’re hoping to get started in the future)
Founding Story: What was the spark that led you to start your project? What was the "Aha!" moment that led you to get started and see the potential for this to succeed?
I like asking questions and finding out how things work. One thing I kept thinking about was the sun. It gives us so much light every day, so I wondered if we could use its energy to help children study, especially in the evening. I started thinking about children who may not have good lighting at home. Some might have electricity, while others might have to use other kinds of light. I do not know how many children in Kenya have this problem yet, and that's something I want to find out. Then I thought, why should I just keep wondering about it? Maybe my friends and I could try making a small solar-powered study lamp. We could ask other children what they need, build something, test it, and see if it really helps. That is how BrightMinds started in my mind.
The Problem: What problem are you helping to solve? Why does it matter to you and your community?
When it is hard to see your books clearly, studying can become difficult. Children need a good place and enough light to read, write, and do their homework. Some homes may not have reliable electricity, and some families may find it difficult to pay for different lighting options. This matters to me because every child deserves a chance to learn and do their best. I also wonder if we can make better use of the sunlight we get during the day to help children study after sunset.
Your Solution: How are you solving this problem? Share your specific solution.
My idea is to make a small solar-powered study lamp that children can use when they want to read or do homework. We will draw our ideas and work with an adult who understands electronics to build a simple lamp. I also want us to use 3D printing to make parts like the lamp body, the holder for the solar panel, and the frame around the light. We will look for a school, workshop, or person who can help us print these parts. We want children to help put the lamp together using a simple picture guide. They can learn what each part does, test the lamp, and tell us how to make it better. It will have a small solar panel to collect sunlight, a rechargeable battery to store the energy, and an LED light for studying. We will test how long it takes to charge, how bright the light is, and how long it stays on. We will also ask other children to try it and tell us what they like and what needs to change. Later, I would also like BrightMinds to help children learn even when they do not have internet access. We could begin with learning materials for subjects like Maths, English, Kiswahili, and Science saved on a device, and we could explore an offline learning assistant.
Impact: How has your project created impact / made a difference so far? Or, if at an early stage, what will impact look like?
BrightMinds is still at the beginning, so I have not built the lamp or measured its impact yet. My first goal is to learn from people in my community and find out if this idea can help. We want to draw at least two lamp designs, build one prototype with adult help, and test it at least three times. With 3D printing, we hope children can help assemble the lamp instead of only looking at a finished product. They could learn how the parts fit together, understand how solar energy powers the light, and suggest changes to the design. We will write down what we learn, including how long the lamp stays on and whether children find it useful for reading and homework. If the lamp works well and is affordable, we can explore how to make more. For me, success is not just making a lamp. It is learning something useful and using it to help others.
Your Innovation: What is different about your project compared to other programs or solutions already out there? How is your project new or innovative?
What makes BrightMinds special to me is the way I want to approach the problem with other children in my community. Instead of buying a lamp and assuming it will solve the problem, we want to ask children what they need first. Children will help find out what is needed, design the lamp, build it, and improve it. We want to use 3D printing to turn our drawings into real parts. If something does not fit or the lamp is difficult to use, we can change the design and try again. We can also make a picture guide so other children can learn to assemble the lamp. I also want the project to bring together clean energy and learning. The first step is a simple solar-powered study lamp. Later, I would like to explore how children can access useful learning materials without needing the internet all the time. I want BrightMinds to be more than giving someone a lamp. I want children to learn about solar energy, design, and how things work by building something themselves.
How many people are on your team?
3
Your team: What role(s) do your team members play? How do you share leadership with them?
My team has 3 children: me, Ayden, and Rosemary. We will share ideas and help each other. We can take turns asking questions, drawing the lamp, writing down what we learn, and testing our design. I may have started the idea, but I want everyone to share their thoughts and help make decisions. We will learn together, and an adult will guide us when we need help building the lamp safely.
What’s Next: What are the next steps you plan to take to grow or strengthen your project over the next year? If your project is still in the idea stage, describe the steps you will take over the next three months to launch or begin developing it.
Over the next three months, I want my friends and me to turn BrightMinds from an idea into something we can test. In the first month, we will talk to 20–30 pupils, parents, and teachers in Kamulu. We will ask about their study lighting and what could make learning easier. We will draw our lamp design and decide which parts could be 3D-printed. In the second month, we hope to get help from a teacher, parent, or someone who understands electronics. With their guidance, we will build a simple solar lamp. We will use the feedback to improve the lamp. We hope to show our work at school or to members of our community and explain what we have learned. We will also prepare a simple record of our results and costs to see whether the idea could be affordable for families. I would like to learn more about saving educational materials on a device so children can use them to learn and practise without internet access. This will be a later step, after we understand the lamp and its power needs. I also hope to find a school, mentor, or community partner who can guide us. My goal is to keep learning, make improvements, and see if BrightMinds can grow into something that helps more children.
How do you encourage other people to join your project or learn about the problem you’re working on? If you have a new idea, tell us how you will do this in the future.
I want to start by inviting two of my school friends to work with me on BrightMinds. We can share ideas and give each other different jobs. One person can help ask questions and write down what people say, and others can help with drawings and testing the lamp. When we have a lamp prototype, we hope to show it to other pupils and explain how it works. We can let them share their thoughts and tell us what could make it better. We can also share what we learn with our teacher and community. I would like other children to see that you do not have to be a grown-up to have an idea or help solve a problem.
