What We're Doing

There's no running water at the school, and no wells nearby - the nearest is an hour's walk. What fresh water there is comes from rain, collected in a catchment tower and hauled to the school in buckets, but that's only usable for non-drinking purposes. Safe drinking water has to either be shipped in by ferry or the rainwater purified first. On top of that, there's only one working toilet for the school's 92 learners, teachers, and staff. Many learners get through the day on very little - often just a rice ball or porridge - and it shows in the classroom, where hunger and fatigue make it harder to focus on lessons.

Notebooks, pens, pencils, chalk, and erasers are in high demand and short supply. Learners often share desks and have no independent space to do their work or read. Projectors and computers are scarce, and many learners simply don't have the basic supplies needed to complete schoolwork or homework.

The entire school runs on a single solar panel - powering lights, a computer, and fans, with no air conditioning at all. It runs out quickly. Generators aren't a realistic fix either, since fuel is expensive and has to be shipped in from the mainland. Solar is the right long-term answer for a sunny island like this, but the school needs more capacity than one panel can provide.