September '11 Newsletter

Two for Two! From August 22 to Sept 13, Thomas was in Zambia installing GlobalLight Projects' second solar installation, this time in the village of Kasaka. The equipment level was similar to what we put in last year in Chona village, with some refinements due to what we've learned. The people were so pleased and they also participated, carrying the expense and labour of chiseling the wire conduit into the stone walls. Everything went along well and this time Thomas was able to finish in good time and do some scouting for a future installation.

In the picture, Thomas is enjoying the view and his work with the solar collectors.

Thomas also carried with him two video projectors, one for each school and a laptop computer for Kasaka so that the electricity can be used to benefit the children's

education. A good number of videos and DVDs also went along. Think for a minute what your view of the world would be like if you never saw a National Geographic film. Well, now those kids can learn about our world in a way they never even dreamed of before. In this picture, Thomas is setting up the projector and computer.

All this was possible because of the generous support of so many friends. To all those who gave, Thank you! Every gift, no matter the size was important and we appreciate everyone who trusted us to do what we said. Every dollar given went directly to the project. We especially want to acknowledge several special partners who made particularly notable contributions: Mary Immaculate Catholic Church whose support put us over the top to make this project possible; Royal View Church for adopting us and donating, too; Lambton College where Thomas is a student for donating the laptop and a projector, Matantala for once again facilitating the work in Zambia, and Thomas' family in Zambia who gave selflessly to make up what we lacked.

So now we are back to the beginning. Our bank account is empty and we're starting over again to raise funds and develop partners so that we can once again use simple technology to improve the lives of people in the developing world. We'll keep you informed as the plans come together. Of course, we welcome your continuing support (a solar system in Africa makes a great Christmas present, don't you think, for those who have 'everything').

If you have  a question or comment Contact us.

Success is the good fortune that comes from aspiration, desperation, perspiration and inspiration.
~Evan Esar

Your GlobalLight Projects Team

Thomas, Wayde, Doug, Marilyn & Peter

July '11 Newsletter

In just over a month, Thomas will be returning to Zambia for this year's project. As we announced in the last newsletter, the purposes of this year's trip are to (1) install additional equipment at the Chona site, (2) provide training to the teachers in how to use the computers that we donated to enhance the students' educational experience and (3) to lay the groundwork for another installation.

We still intend to do all those things, but in consultation with Matantala, our Zambian development partner, the opportunity has presented itself to do a new installation in another village. Kasaka Basic School is near Chona in the Southern province of Zambia. The school has recently been refurbished by Matantala, but the village is well off the electrical grid. It would be great to provide the finishing touch by providing solar power. What a difference that makes!

To do this installation is quite a stretch from our original plans and we need additional funds to do it properly. Realistically, we need $3000 more than we presently have on hand. We are letting our friends know of the need, but more importantly, the opportunity to invest in the future of an African village that sadly, until now, most of the world has passed by.

It will be a full trip. We intend to install a video projector in Chona and provide educational videos to enhance the learning environment. Image what it will be like and the educational advantage it will give to see some of the great documentaries of our world that we all simply take for granted! And, as we noted previously, Thomas will be scouting out Mwanangonze village, west of Monze (the main town near Chona) for the purpose of a future installation in cooperation with our good friend Mabby Mwanangonze (Mabby will be raising funds for this project, so if some of the fundraising takes place near you, be sure to get involved).

We are so grateful to all those who have helped GlobalLight Projects get this far. But there is so much more to do. If you can help with this summer's project, we can assure you that all your funds will go directly to the Kasaka installation and change the future of an Zambian village. Funds need to be here by August 12 so that Thomas can take them with him. Gifts may be made online or by mailing a cheque made out to Royal View Church with the notation GlobalLight Projects to Wayde Foss, 4 McManus Pl., London, ON N5V 4X2. Donations over $10 will receive a tax deductible receipt. Thank you!

If you have  a question or comment Contact us.

A wise man will make more opportunities than he finds.
            ~Francis Bacon

Your GlobalLIght Projects Team
Thomas, Wayde, Peter, Marilyn & Doug

June '11 Newsletter

The GlobalLight Projects team (Thomas, Wayde, Doug, Marilyn and Peter) have been raising funds and exploring possibilities for projects in other areas. Since we announced the completion of the first phase of the Chona installation last summer there have been several inquires, both in Zambia and elsewhere.

Back to Zambia!

We are pleased to announce that Thomas will be returning to Zambia in mid-August. The purposes of this trip are to (1) install additional equipment at the Chona site, (2) provide training to the teachers in how to use the computers that we donated to enhance the students' educational experience and (3) to lay the groundwork for another installation.

In particular, Thomas intends to visit Mwanangonze village, also in southeast Zambia. This is the ancestral village of another Zambian-Canadian, Mabby Mwanangonze. Mabby has already raised funds to help with this summer's Chona project and intends to raise the funds for this new project. We are pleased to find others who are willing to work together with us to better the lives and educational outcomes of families in the developing world.

Getting the Word Out

We've had several occasions to present GlobalLight Projects to a wider public, including the Sarnia Arkwalk and the Green Energy, Agriculture and Bio-science Career Fair.

Thomas was recently featured in an article in The London Free Press focusing on his background, the vision for GlobalLight Projects and his appointment to the Mayor's Council on Sustainable Energy.

You Can Help

As we put together the final details of this summer's project, we can use your help! Your financial contribution will help Thomas have a successful trip. We need funds for Thomas' expenses while in Zambia and for supplies for the school. Gifts may be made online or by mailing a cheque made out to Royal View Church with the notation GlobalLight Projects to Wayde Foss, 4 McManus Pl., London, ON N5V 4X2. Donations over $10 will receive a tax deductible receipt. Thank you!

If you have  a question or comment Contact us.

Do not follow where the path may lead.
Go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.
                    ~ Harold R. McAlindon

Your GlobalLIght Projects Team
Thomas, Wayde, Peter, Marilyn & Doug

February ‘11 Newsletter

The new Chona classrooms - finished!

In the spring of 2010, GlobalLight Projects informed our Zambian development partner, Matantala, that we were prepared to install a solar electric system on the main school building in Chona. We had just enough money for Thomas to fly there, purchase the equipment and install it all on the 3 room block housing the principal’s office. When he arrived in late August, he found a new, much larger building under construction. Building material had been supplied through Matantala and the local community was responsible to provide the labour.

Progress was leisurely until Thomas actually arrived - the walls were not all up yet. As well, the new building has 9 rooms so it was bigger than our budget. But Matantala helped with some of the installation costs and the community got busy, working day and night with the help of a generator (something of a first for rural Africa) and on the final day of Thomas’ stay, he threw the switch, the lights came on for the first time in the Chona school and everyone celebrated. Subsequently the building was plastered and painted. Not only is the new school building beautiful, it is a game-changer: rural schools can have modern amenities and educational tools.

Since September, we have had several meetings where we reported to our supporters and those who contributed on what we have done. We wanted to be sure that everyone knew that we actually accomplished at least the first part of our vision of using simple technology to improve the lives of people in the developing world. Many of the people who contributed to our first project, upon hearing the report, have given again to the next phase. That is so encouraging! Others have been interested, too. You can listen to an interview of Thomas and Doug on ZambiaBlog Talk Radio (an audio stream - there is an ad and then a minute of music before the interview). Or, you can read a brief report in the Lambton College paper (where Thomas is studying alternative energy).

We are also pleased to announce that Thomas has been appointed by the Mayor of London to the Mayor’s Sustainable Energy Council. Although we did not foresee that our passion and expertise would be sought here, we are excited about the opportunity to contribute and make new friends and contacts. Meanwhile, we are planning the next phase for the Chona school, looking for educational software with which to train the Chona teachers and raising funds. There are a couple of exciting things in the works, which we hope to announce soon.

Again we want to thank you for your interest and support. If you would like us to come to share our experience in installing the Chona project, we would be happy to do so. If you would like to help us do the next phase of electrification at the Chona school, you can donate online.

If you have  a question or comment Contact us.

Take calculated risks.

That is quite different from being rash.

~ George S. Patton

Your GlobalLIght Projects Team
Thomas, Wayde, Peter, Marilyn & Doug

Dec 10 Newsletter

October '10 Newsletter

You Are Invited!

Share An Evening with the GlobalLight Projects Team

To Report to our Friends and Supporters
& To Celebrate our First Installation

Pictures - Video - Thomas' Report - Refreshments

Hear how, upon arriving Thomas discovered a new building under construction, that was oriented the wrong way for a proper solar installation. How the community worked literally day and night to finish the building. How Thomas solved the orientation problem. How on his last morning, the roof was just going on. How he got a working installation, complete with computers. How nearly 500 people came to celebrate.

We could not have done it without you and we want to share the story with you. It's our way of rejoicing and being accountable at the same time.

Friday, October 15, 7:00 P.M.
Royal View Church

218 Clarke Rd. London

RSVP so we can prepare for you!

They can because they think they can.
~ Virgil

Your GlobalLIght Projects Team
Thomas, Wayde, Peter, Marilyn & Doug

September '10 Newsletter

Mission Accomplished!

On September 5, Thomas completed the installation of a solar system in the school in Chona, southern Zambia. Then there was a party!

Our plan from the beginning was to provide electricity to the Chona school, which had been recently refurbished by Matantala, a Zambian development agency focused on eradicating poverty through improvement in education, among other things. When Thomas arrived in Zambia on August 20, he found that Matantala and the village had decided to construct a new building consisting of 3 classrooms, staff room and a head master's office complete with a strong room (i.e. cement ceiling, floor and walls with no window). They wanted this new building to get the installation. There were two problems. The building was not completed - the walls were not even all the way up, and Thomas only had a few days to get the job done. Also, the building was not oriented to properly catch the sun's rays with the panels fastened to the roof. Had we come all this way only to have to leave an unfinished project?

After seeing that Thomas had really come, the village got busy and worked hard to get the building up. They got the ridge cap on the roof on the morning of September 5, which was Thomas' last day. But that left the issue of how to get the solar panels on so they would work. In consulting SunTech, the supplier in Lusaka, Thomas discovered that they had developed a rotating frame that eliminated the problem of orientation. Since southern Zambia is not prone to high winds, it would not be a problem if the panels were raised above the roof ridge rather than fastened on the roof slope. So with that, Thomas re-designed the system for the new building, laying out the material in preparation for the moment the building would be ready.

It all came together. Matantala contributed by providing Thomas with transportation and paying the electrician to wire the building. This is Matantala's first rural school with electricity, and we are proud and grateful to have them as a partner. On Sunday, September 5, just minutes after the switch being thrown to light the classrooms, the village celebrated. Between 400-500 people came. Television, radio and the press covered the event. All of Zambia learned that a few friends from Canada, with some generous supporters and a wonderful Zambian partner had created an historic moment - the electrification of a rural school far from the electrical grid.

Thomas came home tired and happy. His dream of doing something concrete for his people was beginning to come true. More requests from Zambia are arriving, as you might imagine. We want to finish the school, electrifying the other buildings and the teachers' homes, so that rural students can compete with kids from the city for places in higher education. Interest has also been expressed from other places in Africa. We are excited to see what our next steps will be.

The people of Chona have finished the school since Thomas left, plastering the walls, painting inside and out. The new school term has begun and children are using the new building.  Thomas' uncle, Mr. Mark Chona and his family donated a new computer and colour printer and they are working at installing an antenna so that there will be Internet service in the village via cellular signal. The twenty-first century is arriving in Chona!



For a sense of what it is like to live in southern Zambia and why we did the project, read Mark Chona's speech at the celebration ceremony. It is both informative and moving.

Thanks to all those who have encouraged us from the beginning and who have helped us to get this far. We could not have done this without you! To say thank you and to tell the dramatic story of the challenges of the installation, we would like to invite you to an information and celebration evening at Royal View Church, 218 Clarke Rd. London on Friday, October 15 at 7:00 p.m. We would be honoured if you joined us. If that time and place is inconvenient, we would be delighted to come to you and share the story. Just let us know so we can work out the details.

If you have  a question or comment Contact us.

We did not come to watch.
~Marilyn Crewe

Your GlobalLIght Projects Team
Thomas, Wayde, Peter, Marilyn & Doug