What is the name of your organization?
Renewvia Energy / Synota LLC / AQ Giving (partnership)
What is the name of your solution?
Solar + AI Education Nexus
Provide a one-line summary or tagline for your solution.
Accelerating community development through solar-powered microgrids, AI-driven productive use of energy education, and inclusive economic growth.
In what city, town, or region is your solution team headquartered?
Nairobi, Kenya
In what country is your solution team headquartered?
KEN
What type of organization is your solution team?
Hybrid of for-profit and nonprofit
Film your elevator pitch.
What specific problem are you solving?
Around the world, hundreds of millions of people live without reliable or affordable access to electricity. In sub-Saharan Africa alone, approximately 600 million people lack power. Many communities in these regions remain off-grid or rely on costly and polluting diesel generators. Traditional microgrid projects often depend heavily on grants and donations—up to 70-90% of total costs—because communities can take years to generate enough local income to repay investments. Moreover, even when power is introduced, limited digital literacy and lack of internet access hinder communities from fully leveraging modern technologies and educational resources. This gap in energy and digital readiness disproportionately affects women and girls, who often lack formal education and financial opportunities, further entrenching gender inequalities. Our solution addresses these challenges by combining solar microgrids with comprehensive AI-driven digital education, internet connectivity, and community engagement strategies. This integrated approach is intended to ensure that newly powered communities can immediately use electricity for productive, income-generating activities—while also building local human capital and supporting women and girls, who play a pivotal role in fostering sustainable community development.
What is your solution?
Our solution, Solar + AI Education Nexus, installs and operates solar microgrids in unpowered or underpowered communities, coupled with internet connectivity, computers, and AI-based educational programs. Instead of relying entirely on donations, we blend philanthropic capital with private investment and innovative payment technologies—such as the Bitcoin Lightning Network—to streamline cross-border transactions and manage household-level payments in real time.
The leader organization, Renewvia Energy, a B-Corp, is a leader in solar microgrid development across Africa. Partner Synota brings financial and technological expertise in global payment infrastructure. Synota also provides AI-centric learning technology (e.g., a local ChatGPT-like interface) to accelerate digital and entrepreneurial skills and enhance productive income assets in the community. In tandem, we offer scholarships for girls and business support programs for women, recognizing that when women lead and learn, entire communities benefit. Our aim is to shorten the time from microgrid deployment to economic self-sufficiency by empowering community members with both reliable energy and the digital capabilities to use it productively. This shift is needed to create investment-worthy projects which could advance renewable energy and education to unpowered people at scale.
Who does your solution serve, and in what ways will the solution impact their lives?
We primarily serve off-grid communities in sub-Saharan Africa that lack reliable access to electricity, internet, and high-quality education. These communities often face multiple barriers—geographic remoteness, insufficient public investment, and limited exposure to technological tools—that hamper socioeconomic development. Within these communities, women and youth are particularly underserved, facing disparities in education, employment opportunities, and leadership roles.
By delivering solar-powered microgrids, we provide a dependable, clean source of energy that supports household lighting, refrigeration, and small-scale businesses. Through internet connectivity and AI-driven educational programs, we aim to enhance digital literacy, enabling learners to develop market-relevant skills, from basic coding to advanced AI concepts. Scholarships for girls and business support for women entrepreneurs further ensure that economic gains are broadly shared and that cultural norms around education and gender can shift positively. In essence, our solution helps communities build productive uses of energy—like operating mills, refrigeration for agriculture, or digital marketplaces—while nurturing a more inclusive environment where all members, especially women and girls, can thrive.