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Solar Project

PROVIDING SOLAR ENERGY TO CONSERVATION PROJECTS AROUND THE WORLD

Solar power is reliable, quiet, and clean, making it an ideal and often the only choice for remote field locations.

Solar Project

In 2003, WCN supporter Stephen Gold initiated a volunteer project to provide solar energy to conservation projects around the world. This innovative endeavor meets the great need for electricity, water harvesting, purification and sustainability in remote field stations, and combines cutting-edge technology with wildlife conservation and sustainable environmental practices. With generous donations from corporations and individuals, Stephen designs and assembles new solar electricity systems and other systems, and ships the equipment to the field. Systems have been sent to Wildlife Conservation Network Partners, past guest speakers at the Wildlife Conservation Expo, and other extraordinary conservationists around the world.

Through the Solar Project, many conservationists have been able to switch from unreliable or unclean power supplies like diesel or car batteries to solar, which requires very little maintenance, is clean, and makes no noise. These systems power everything, from conservation camps to research activities like Save the Elephants’ tracking system, which follows elephants in real-time GPS. This is fundamental to all conservationists to allow them to live, function, and save wildlife.

READ A PROFILE OF STEPHEN GOLD AND HIS WORK ON THE WCN SOLAR PROJECT

READ A SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE ARTICLE ABOUT THE WCN SOLAR PROJECT

Project Niger

Project Niger is the Solar Project's biggest initiative yet—aiming to support the Sahara Conservation Fund's recovery efforts of North African Ostrich populations throughout the Sahelo-Saharan range.
NEWS COVERAGE

Solar Helps Save the North African Desert Ostrich

View footage of the largest off-grid solar field station that is helping save this rare Ostrich subspecies in North Africa, complete with an incubation and hatchery lab. If they can hatch chicks in the remote Sahara Desert, there's hope that they can save these unique birds.

Conservationist Rebecca Klein of Cheetah Conservation Botswana was in need of energy to conduct her research in Botswana back in 2003. Rebecca works in remote areas of Botswana where power is not easy to get, and she desperately needed a reliable source of energy for her project. She spoke of this need at the 2003 Wildlife Conservation Expo, where San Francisco-based solar energy proponent Stephen Gold heard her. Gold contacted WCN and volunteered to help, and the WCN Solar Project was born.

Gold found that many conservationists were using either diesel generators or antiquated solar systems that were inadequate for their needs. Since that time, the WCN Solar Project has brought solar systems to Rebecca Klein and almost 50 other conservation projects around the world.

50 Solar Projects Installed Worldwide

Botswana

Cheetah Conservation Botswana · 3 systems

Ethiopia

Ethiopian Wolf Project · 3 systems

Kenya

Save the Elephants · 2 systems
Living With Lions · 2 systems
Lion Guardians · 1 system
Amboseli Trust for Elephants · 3 systems

Mongolia

Snow Leopard Trust · 3 systems

Mozambique

Niassa Lion Project · 3 systems

Niger

Sahara Conservation Fund · 1 system

Papua New Guinea

Tenkile Conservation Alliance · 19 systems

Peru

Spectacled Bear Conservation · 1 system

Tanzania

African People & Wildlife · 3 systems
Ruaha Carnivore Project · 2 systems

Zimbabwe

Painted Dog Conservation · 3 systems
Painted Dog Research Trust · 1 system

Amick Construction
Aqua Sun International
Bajada Electric
Beronio Lumber
Bob’s Iron, Inc.
ESP Exotic and Specialty Products
NatureForm
OutBack Power
Peter Retondo Architecture
Simpliphi Power, Inc.
Soligent
Yick and Company

BECOME A SUPPORTER OF THE SOLAR PROJECT AND HELP BRING CLEAN, RENEWABLE ENERGY TO CONSERVATIONISTS AROUND THE WORLD.

Solar Power Offers New Hope for North African Ostriches

Solar Power Offers New Hope for North African Ostriches

Technology is a powerful asset in wildlife conservation, and it helps conservationists give struggling species a new chance at life.... Learn More
Harnessing the Sun’s Rays to Power Conservation

Harnessing the Sun’s Rays to Power Conservation

Sun-soaked days are here as we mark the longest day of the year––the summer solstice. All life on Earth is... Learn More
WCN's Solar Project Partners with the Sahara Conservation Fund to Save North African Ostriches

WCN's Solar Project Partners with the Sahara Conservation Fund to Save North African Ostriches

WCN's Solar Project, dedicated to providing solar energy to conservation projects in the remotest corners of the world, has partnered... Learn More
Bringing Solar Power to Conservation

Bringing Solar Power to Conservation

WCN supporter Steve Gold is now entering his twelfth year of providing solar panels to wildlife conservationists out in the... Learn More
The Solar Project: Changing Lives One Community at a Time

The Solar Project: Changing Lives One Community at a Time

Life in the villages within the Torricelli Mountain Range of Papua New Guinea can be immensely challenging. The area is... Learn More
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