Africa is the sunniest continent on Earth, especially as there are many perpetually sunny areas like the huge Sahara Desert. It has much greater solar resources than any other continent.
In South Sudan, Energy-short South Sudan, sunlight is available in abundance. Solar power panels serve the purpose of absorbing solar energy and converting it to electric power through the photovoltaic (PV) effect.
The solar project will offer an 80% to 90% reduction in diesel fuel consumption.
In all our missions in South Sudan the Solar System is on operating for the daily needs of electricity.
As plastic pollution has been emerging as a huge environmental problem, Salesian Sisters in Juba, South Sudan, have found a solution to clean the environment and marvelously recycle plastic bottles. In Juba, the people struggled to access clean water, and many people drink bottled water and throw the empties out. Each day more than one million plastic bottles are thrown away. Six years ago, our sisters in Gumbo determined to turn plastic trash into treasure. This initiative has been an effective solution for cleaning the environment and building safe and stable housing.
Sr. Lourdes, who proposed this project, found some passionate young people, and Andrew known as the Bottle Engineer started this successful initiative.
Cleaning the environment
Women and children collect plastic bottles and fill them with sand. As a result, the environment has been cleaned up.
Generating income and job
The people in the camp collect and fill the bottles as construction bricks and sell them to the mission. It is a job for the group of young people who are participating in building these houses. Therefore, it is an income for the families that prepare the bottles and a job for the young builders.
Providing affordable housing
As the people are facing the difficulties to build and maintain their traditional houses that are made of grass, this plastic bottle houses become a substantial solution for the people.
This plastic bottle house is stronger than the traditional house.
Bottles have the following advantages over bricks and other construction materials
1. Low cost 2. Non-Brittle – (Unlike bricks) 3. Absorbs abrupt shock loads
2. Re-usable 6. Less construction material 7. Easy to build 8. Green Construction