Each year the Miss Earth selects a theme for the International competition and each delegate is required to do certain projects related to the theme. This year, as the world’s focus is drawn to the problem of increasingly scarce natural resources such as fossil fuels, the theme of the Miss
Earth is “Sustainable Energy for All.” As part of her preparations Jardine visited the residents of Duduza Township in Ekurhuleni, east of Johannesburg so as to gain a better understanding of what it’s like to live in an informal settlement and what “sustainable energy” could mean to these residents.

Natural lighting is virtually non-existent in informal settlements in South Africa and electricity is equally as scarce. As such residents of such communities are forced to resort to candles, paraffin and kerosene lamps and other equally dangerous methods to light their homes. These open flames are the cause of hundreds of thousands of shack fires each year, which result in the deaths of thousands of South Africans and injury or
scores more, including countless children. In an attempt to combat this, the Miss Earth South Africa has undertaken a project that aims to bring light into the darkest homes in South Africa.

The process is simple enough and uses our natural resource of sunshine, the reuse of empty bottles, chlorine and water. The chemical reaction between the water and chlorine amplifies the affect of the sun, streaming natural light into the shack. This light harvesting technique coupled with the installation of a solar panel, which can power up to six informal homes per panel, has brought the light of hope into this underprivileged community.

This highly successful pilot project, which will be rolled out to more homes in the new year, will be one of the projects our Miss Earth South Africa 2012, Tamerin Jardine, will present on an international stage in Manila, Philippines in the weeks to come. As well as the work done by the national campaign 49M which is a partner with Miss Earth South Africa.

For more on the project visit www.missearthsa.co.za/index.php/projects/water-and-energy or go to
the Miss Earth South Africa YouTube channel.