Some two billion people in the world are without access to affordable, reliable light after the sun sets. This want of light diminishes their quality of life and security. One man’s invention is beginning to illuminate Africa, and is on its way to lighting many other poor corners of the world. Its affordability and demonstrated utility make this  invention a natural candidate for international acclaim. As it enables people to lead more productive lives, it is also in line for ergonomics recognition.

“It” is a flashlight that gives up to seven hours of light on a daily solar recharge and can last nearly three years between replacements of three AA batteries. The lightweight, water- and shock-resistant LED flashlight can transform 10 hours of sunshine into six hours of night light.

The maker, SunNight Solar Enterprises LLC, points out in its product promotion that access to inexpensive lighting also provides an economic and social multiplier effect, lifting societies far in excess of simple illumination and creating opportunity without creating dependency.

The inventor and SunNight Solar company founder is Mark Bent, a former United States Marine, foreign service officer and Houston oilman. He has spent more than 20 years in Africa. “To us, it’s a flashlight, basically a toy,” the inventor told the Dallas News in May. “But if you live in Africa, where you often spend 30 percent of your income on kerosene for lighting, it’s a really, really big deal.”

Visits to an Eritrean village in 2005 prompted him to research global access to artificial light, according to the New York Times (NYT). A group of homeless boys took him home to a rural village where he noticed that many people had nothing to light their homes, schools and clinics at night. Researching the issue, he found that close to two billion people around the world go without affordable access to light.

According to the NYT he worked on the invention with researchers, engineers and manufacturers in the United States, then found a factory in China able to produce the flashlights cost-effectively.

Over the last year, he said in the article, he and corporate benefactors such as Exxon Mobil have donated 10,500 flashlights to United Nations refugee camps and African aid charities. Another 10,000 have been provided through a sales program, and 10,000 more have just arrived in Houston awaiting distribution by his company.

Sources: SunNight Solar Enterprises LLC; Dallas News; New York Times