Back to the program and I can say the first day was a lot of fun. We had our startup session with Pollinate Energy and got to know our international (eight) and local (seven) team members. We then split into groups to venture to the city’s landmarks, collecting points along the way by drinking chai out of clay cups, doing group yoga poses, finding mangoes (they are out of season) and making friends.

We are the first professional group to come to Lucknow, and many of the projects we’ve been given are based around data gathering and setting up the city for business. On day 2 we had a quick Hindi lesson before being assigned our Honeycomb projects.

One team is scouting the neighbouring city of Kanpur to see whether expansion into this city is possible. Kanpur is 70 kilometres south west of Lucknow and has a population of four million people. A second team is surveying new slum communities in Lucknow to see what products (solar fans, water filters or eco cooktops) could be introduced. The ArchTam team is surveying market carts and stalls to see if they are interested in the solar lights and fans to replace their current rudimentary car battery and LED strip system. Our team is also working with Pollinate Energy to help with the recruitment process of “Pollinators,” who are locals that will sell the solar lights and other sustainable products in the slum communities.

Our team got straight into developing a survey to get an understanding of the lighting situation for market sellers. The survey had to be short, sharp and shiny, as a long survey would distract the owner from potential customers. If it was too short, we wouldn’t be able to gather the information we needed. The main questions focused on trading hours, profit per day, the current light system and how much that system cost them either outright or on a per day basis.

We have conducted approximately 50 surveys so far across five locations, and our initial findings were eye opening. A large number of stall owners work long hours, mostly from 8 a.m. until 10 p.m. for an average of 500 INR a day. That’s an hourly rate of approximately AU$0.70! On top of that, they were often paying between 20 – 50 INR per day for their lighting system. Our solar lighting systems could definitely have a positive impact on these people, as these stall owners are likely to be from the slum communities themselves.

At the end of week 1 we were treated to a day off, so a small group of us ventured to the Taj Mahal – an eight-hour bus ride from Lucknow. It was a tiring journey, and after arriving at our hotel at 2 a.m. and managing just three hours sleep, we were up again to see the sunrise at the Taj. What an amazing monument, built out of shimmering white marble to house the favourite wife of the emperor at that time. It was a short day trip to Agra, but well worth the journey.

The post Bright lights shine on in India appeared first on Blog.

If you haven’t heard about Pollinate Energy from participants in previous years, then you’ve been living under a rock! Pollinate Energy is a social enterprise founded by five young Australians that brings sustainable products to the urban poor in India. Pollinate Energy’s innovative business model aims to replace the need for kerosene through the sale of solar lights or other sustainable projects in the slum communities.

It was a crazy last week of work before the start of the program, and getting to Lucknow from Adelaide, South Australia, was not a simple journey. After 26 hours of transit time and three flights later, I arrived in the hot and humid, developing and lively city of Lucknow. The city is located in northern India, three hours from the Nepali border and is home to nearly 3 million beautiful and friendly people.

The best part of the journey was arriving to the warmest of welcomes from Pollinate city co-founders Marc and JJ and the rest of the program participants at “The Hive,” our home for the next two weeks.

The first couple of days here have been filled with millions of smiles, colourful dresses and lots of smells, from one extreme of beautiful spices to the not-so-wonderful smells of the streets. Let’s not forget the amazing food: various flat breads, curries, mimosas and interesting yoghurt drinks available! One thing I have noticed in the last two days is that my tolerance for spicy food has definitely increased.

The traffic here is chaos! The combination of cars, motorbikes and rickshaws all mixed in together is like a clumsy dance at a disco, with vehicles slowly pushing their way towards their destination. The traffic engineer in me is on high alert at the lack of rules, or more likely the lack of following them – basically it is fair game on the roads. I think I’ll need some time to come up with a solution to this chaos, and will keep you posted on this one!

In addition to my traffic solutions, over the coming two weeks we will start to gather data to assist Pollinate Energy with its expansion into this city. Bye for now and I look forward to giving you some progress updates along this exciting journey!

The post Warm welcomes and traffic chaos! appeared first on Blog.