LuminAID lights the way

Full-Time student Andrea Sreshta, whose inflatable lantern LuminAID won the 2012 John Edwardson, ’72, Social New Venture Challenge, hasn’t had much time to bask in the glow of her start-up’s success.

This summer, Sreshta and partner Anna Stork launched a campaign that donated 500 lanterns to relief workers in developing regions and disaster areas. Among the benefitting groups was a project that offers classes to girls in rural Rwanda. Additional lanterns were donated to Operation Outreach Afghanistan, a group of deployed United States service members providing relief to Afghani civilians.

Relatively inexpensive and lightweight—10 lights weigh less than two pounds—the lanterns are comprised of a solar cell, rechargeable lithium-polymer ion battery, and one LED bulb. LuminAID requires six to seven hours in the sun for a full charge, which provides up to 16 hours of light.

The lanterns have been a boon in devastated areas that lack electricity, and Sreshta hopes demand from the outdoor recreation market will be strong enough to make the enterprise profitable.

LuminAID and Sreshta - who received classroom instruction, mentorship, and other support through SEI - have been covered recently in the Financial Times, BBC, Outside magazine, and the Chicago Tribune. Read more about Sreshta and LuminAID »